| By: Jacob Rocha | |
As many of you know (or will soon find out), public relations is a fast-paced, detail-oriented and schedule-driven field. Much like the journalistic peers of our parent major at San Diego State University, PR professionals must think on their feet to create content and coordinate efforts with absolutely no room for error.
It shouldn’t surprise you that being a PRSSA Chapter leader is a HUGE responsibility. It can be quite the daunting task, which is why PRSSA holds annual leadership rallies. These rallies are opportunities for leaders of each Chapter to share ideas, network and walk away with valuable tools. Tools that will allow their Chapters to run productively and efficiently and create an engaging experience for its members.
This year, our Chapter President Vivian Vy Lam was unable to attend the rally, so I was fortunate enough to represent our Chapter in her place. I got caught up to speed with my vice presidential duties, gained some valuable knowledge and had a little fun in the process! Without further ado, these are my key takeaways from the 2017 PRSSA Leadership Rally:
1. This wasn’t just a leadership rally, this was a life rally. As cheesy as it sounds, a lot of what the keynote speakers had to say could be applied not just to leadership roles, but to anyone taking control of their own life and making a positive influence on those around them. The welcome speech by Jane Dvorak, APR, Fellow PRSA spoke of the need to empower others and remember that everyone works at a different pace. The following day featured a keynote presentation by Brandi Boatner, digital media experience manager for IBM. She emphasized the importance of not being afraid to fail and not listening to the voice in your head that questions your ability. Her most notable quote? “Aloof is cool in 2017, but focused and strategic make money.”
2. Recognize different leadership styles and adaptability. My absolute favorite part of this year’s #PRSSALR was the keynote presentation by Gary McCormick, APR, Fellow PRSA. McCormick is a highly accomplished PR practitioner who owns his own communications firm in Knoxville, Tennessee. He spoke of many different leadership styles and how to utilize each of them to its fullest potential. Although we as individuals will always have one inherent leadership style, we should not be confined to only one. A good leader must read his or her team and adjust accordingly to the situation at hand. However, being a good leader is not just about knowing your team members’ strengths and weaknesses, it’s also about knowing yourself and how you react to change and challenges.
3. Promote creative thinking. Being in the presence of so many driven students was truly inspirational. During our cohort breakout sessions, we students all shared ideas about how to boost membership, hold engaging meetings and maximize fundraising efforts. It was a free space to share new ideas and make tweaks to existing plans that came from prior experience. The theme of the sessions were about trusting your e-board, and being open to new ideas. We also heard some great advice from both the incoming and immediate past PRSSA National presidents, Andrew Cook and Emma Finkbeiner.
4. Keep your end goal in mind at all times. In the end, what are every student’s main priorities? We all want to get the best education we possibly can and get a job! A huge benefit of being in a student organization like PRSSA SDSU is that we go through the same curriculum and we’ll enter similar professions after our college experiences. We can all benefit by disseminating notes, assignment expectations and valuable internship opportunities amongst each other. Another bonus is that PRSSA connects students to the insight and tools they need to stand out when it comes time to apply for your dream internship or job.
5. Comradery is key. PRSSA is something that we all take seriously. After all, it’s meant to usher us into the professional world. However, college is still meant to be a fun, social experience. It will be much more fruitful if we come together and collaborate.
Our executive board will do everything in our power to make our Chapter’s meetings fun and interesting. However, we can’t do that without the help of our members. Make your presence known, get involved and I guarantee we’ll have a great year!
It shouldn’t surprise you that being a PRSSA Chapter leader is a HUGE responsibility. It can be quite the daunting task, which is why PRSSA holds annual leadership rallies. These rallies are opportunities for leaders of each Chapter to share ideas, network and walk away with valuable tools. Tools that will allow their Chapters to run productively and efficiently and create an engaging experience for its members.
This year, our Chapter President Vivian Vy Lam was unable to attend the rally, so I was fortunate enough to represent our Chapter in her place. I got caught up to speed with my vice presidential duties, gained some valuable knowledge and had a little fun in the process! Without further ado, these are my key takeaways from the 2017 PRSSA Leadership Rally:
1. This wasn’t just a leadership rally, this was a life rally. As cheesy as it sounds, a lot of what the keynote speakers had to say could be applied not just to leadership roles, but to anyone taking control of their own life and making a positive influence on those around them. The welcome speech by Jane Dvorak, APR, Fellow PRSA spoke of the need to empower others and remember that everyone works at a different pace. The following day featured a keynote presentation by Brandi Boatner, digital media experience manager for IBM. She emphasized the importance of not being afraid to fail and not listening to the voice in your head that questions your ability. Her most notable quote? “Aloof is cool in 2017, but focused and strategic make money.”
2. Recognize different leadership styles and adaptability. My absolute favorite part of this year’s #PRSSALR was the keynote presentation by Gary McCormick, APR, Fellow PRSA. McCormick is a highly accomplished PR practitioner who owns his own communications firm in Knoxville, Tennessee. He spoke of many different leadership styles and how to utilize each of them to its fullest potential. Although we as individuals will always have one inherent leadership style, we should not be confined to only one. A good leader must read his or her team and adjust accordingly to the situation at hand. However, being a good leader is not just about knowing your team members’ strengths and weaknesses, it’s also about knowing yourself and how you react to change and challenges.
3. Promote creative thinking. Being in the presence of so many driven students was truly inspirational. During our cohort breakout sessions, we students all shared ideas about how to boost membership, hold engaging meetings and maximize fundraising efforts. It was a free space to share new ideas and make tweaks to existing plans that came from prior experience. The theme of the sessions were about trusting your e-board, and being open to new ideas. We also heard some great advice from both the incoming and immediate past PRSSA National presidents, Andrew Cook and Emma Finkbeiner.
4. Keep your end goal in mind at all times. In the end, what are every student’s main priorities? We all want to get the best education we possibly can and get a job! A huge benefit of being in a student organization like PRSSA SDSU is that we go through the same curriculum and we’ll enter similar professions after our college experiences. We can all benefit by disseminating notes, assignment expectations and valuable internship opportunities amongst each other. Another bonus is that PRSSA connects students to the insight and tools they need to stand out when it comes time to apply for your dream internship or job.
5. Comradery is key. PRSSA is something that we all take seriously. After all, it’s meant to usher us into the professional world. However, college is still meant to be a fun, social experience. It will be much more fruitful if we come together and collaborate.
Our executive board will do everything in our power to make our Chapter’s meetings fun and interesting. However, we can’t do that without the help of our members. Make your presence known, get involved and I guarantee we’ll have a great year!
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