Recent college graduates often feel the pressure of starting a new job right out of college. Once the excitement of landing a job dissipates, the realities of real-life deadlines sink in. Emerging PR professionals can use these three tips to help them along in their new journey.
First, don’t be shy! College prepares you for critical thinking and encourages creativity. You can transfer these practices into your position with ease as long as you trust yourself. It is simply giving yourself the clearance to accept the challenge and deliver your ideas. For instance, if you are in a meeting and your co-workers don’t know how to get a result, but you do, speak up. That is why you are there in the first place. However, there is a fine line between balancing your newly acquired skills and the willingness to learn from those above you.
Secondly, understand that criticism will help you. Your co-workers do not know it all, but they know more than you. Their time and experience in your particular work environment presents an opportunity for you to learn from them. If they give you feedback on your writing or a project, use that to your advantage. Even if you truly believe that you did everything right, there is always room for improvement. Your co-workers are your mentors and can help you more than you realize.
Finally, it is good to know your strengths, but even better to know your weaknesses. College was the first step in this process. You may have struggled with deadlines or lacked organizational skills, but now you have the opportunity to work on the weaknesses and turn them into strengths. Understand that you, just like the rest of your co-workers, have things to work on. The power of understanding yourself, and how you contribute to the team, is the best gift you can give yourself.
This post was written by PPRA College Relations Chair Darrah Foster. Darrah is the Marketing and Public Relations Coordinator at Independence Seaport Museum, where she works on the Museum’s social media accounts and serves as the subject matter expert for website content. Connect with her on Twitter or LinkedIn.
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This article has caused me a little anxiety relief. As a college senior, I have been constantly thinking about what life is going to be like “really” being in the real world. At times I wonder and become nervous about going into a career field that I wish to someday excel greatly in, yet have very little or no experience in. These tips have now given me a little more confidence and encouraged me not to doubt myself.
Glad to hear you enjoyed the post and that it allowed you to stress a little less. Best of luck with finishing up school and starting your career!
Nice article! I love the focus on humility. The hardest thing for me to realize out of college was that constructive criticism didn’t mean my bosses wanted to fire me — it meant they made an investment in my career, and if they didn’t care, they wouldn’t take the time and effort to help me.
Once hired for a job, we’re not expected to be 100% perfect, and some amount of grooming is to be expected. In the right environment, you’ll learn more in a 1-hour meeting than in an entire semester of college — or everything you learned will crystallize into something invaluable that you’ll carry with you throughout your entire working life.
Thanks for your feedback Isaac! We’re glad you enjoyed the post. Love your point about on-the-job learning.