Think from their point of view

I always think of September as being a cut-off in the working year, where I try to buckle down after the summer. If I was to make any ‘new work year’ resolutions, what would you recommend they be?

By Unicorn Jobs

If you’re thinking of making some resolutions, we’d recommend having an out of body experience! Seriously: evaluate what you do from the point of view of your stakeholders.

We usually think about work from our own point of view. Of course we do. What else would you do? Well actually, it’s a really enjoyable – and incredibly useful – exercise to put yourself in someone else’s shoes – namely the people you communicate with every day.

For example, if you’re in investor relations, take a moment to reflect on the occasions when a client has complimented you on your work. Think about what it was that impressed them – what was it about your work that they especially appreciated? Was it your inventiveness, thoroughness, tact, attention to detail? See whether you can bring those qualities – which you evidently possess – to bear in other tasks and with other people. If on the other hand, you know in your heart of hearts that you have nearly come unstuck once or twice, then think about how you can work on those weaknesses.

Similarly, if you deal with the press, try to have a better understanding of what they want and need from you. Note down all your contacts’ deadlines – when their magazine or the pages they write for go to press, and when is a good time to call. (Or to put it another way, remember when they last barked at you that they were ‘on deadline’. Being unaware of a journalist’s deadlines is perhaps the Number One most annoying habit that a PR person can have.) Also note when you’ve found they’re looking for ideas and more inclined to pick up on your feature suggestions – for the Sunday-for-Monday news pages for example. In other words, structure your work to help them to do a good job. They’ll like you for it. And a good PR/journalist relationship is priceless.

Whether your ‘stakeholders’ are clients or journalists, put yourself in their shoes and think about how you can improve what you offer them. You can even consider asking them for feedback if you’re feeling brave. This isn’t such a crazy idea. If you find yourself in the pub with a journalist contact, quiz them on what they love and hate about the comms people who they come into contact with. And what their ideal PR person would be like. You might be surprised – and learn a lot into the bargain.