August in Washington, D.C., where I work, exemplifies the “dog-days” of summer. Congress recesses and it seems everyone else does, too. The slightly slower pace allows us time to reflect on the first half of the year, and make plans for the last two quarters.
“Third and Fourth Quarters Will Define PR Recovery” headlined a recent PR Week article. Image may be NSFW.
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To summarize: Just because there was an upswing in the first two quarters of the year, does not mean the industry has truly emerged from the downturn.
So how can you help your organization emerge successfully?
1. Efficiency is a term thrown-around a lot, but it is still an important concept to PR that few have mastered. One friend, who works at a Fortune 500 company, said she wrote down everything she did for a few days. She was shocked to see she was not as good at multi-tasking as she thought. Her advice was to try to focus on completing a project before you look at the next email or tweet. This mirrors a similar idea expressed in a recent BurrellesLuce Fresh Ideas post by my colleague Colleen Flood, who attended the PRSA Counselors Academy back in May and learned that people can only do one thing at a time, as our brains haven’t yet involved to truly multi-task.
2. Mary Fletcher-Jones, Fletcher Prince, said via LinkedIn, that she plans to review clients who came on, clients who left, and what they purchased. I plan to do some of this same reflection and I think it is good for public relations, sales, and client service professionals to incorporate this practice on a regular basis.
Here are some other ideas for your August refection time:
- Review budgets for the rest of 2010 and start on the 2011 budget.
- Look at your PR/marketing plan, and decide if you need to make some mid-year changes.
- Take time to read industry blogs and articles. What new tactics can you learn and put to use?
- If you find you don’t have time for good refection, you might need to review your staffing needs. Do you need to hire someone to help with new projects/campaigns?
- Set some new personal goals for the rest of the year. A life coach once suggested posting your main personal goals where you see them often, like on a Post-it note on your desk.
Do you have other suggestions for a mid-year review? Please share some of your insights. How are you working to help your organization emerge from the recession?
