Over the course of my internship at Thrive I witnessed first hand the ins and outs of one of the most successful independent PR companies in Australia. Needless to say as my first office job, there were a few learning curves. It was an eye-opening and educational experience and along the way I learnt some valuable lessons that I can to pass on to future PR interns.
1. Your day starts and ends with a cup of coffee.
2. You’ll spend most of your day running from job to job – walking is not an option!
3. Which in the Australian summer means you’re going to be drenched in sweat! PR can be a sweaty job…
4. But that does mean you’ll master the art of power-walking in 5-inch heels laden with bags, all the while checking your iPhone. Juggling things will be a walk in the park by the time you’re done.
5. No journalist is going to pick up your call for a media kit request on a Friday afternoon, so plan ahead!
6. Your non-PR friends will never understand what you do on a day-to-day basis, even when you’ve explained it over and over again.
7. Your to-do list somehow gets longer and longer as the day goes on, even when you feel like you’ve ticked a million things off! Ensure enough space by writing it on a roll of toilet paper.
8. Everyone speaks in acronyms, so make sure you brush up on the lingo. KPI, EOC, EOM, RTB, WIP, EDM, and SOW will become a second language to you.
9. Two Words. Google. Alerts. Google Alerts.
10. Keep in contact with your old friends. Connections will be your advantage and you’ll never who you might end up needing in a PR emergency – so try to stay in contact with everyone!
11. By the end of your internship you’ll be pro at handling rejection – it’s all part of the job folks!
Brought to you by Edward Guaw (fellow intern).