First published in 1988, medical Robert Fulgham’s book, All I Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten, rose to the ranks of a bestseller. But his rules from 27 years ago can easily be applied to today’s public relations industry with just a little jiggering. Here’s how just five of his rules can be applied today in PR:
1. Play fair. Realize that it’s not only what you do it’s how you do it. What did it take for you to land that big account? To get that big raise and promotion? To land that media exclusive? Did you play by the rules or did you have to do something underhanded in order to achieve your victory? Remember, what you do to accomplish your goals can often comeback to bite you in the rear. Play nice.
2. Don’t hit people. Remember, there is always room at the top to accommodate everyone who hope to become a winner in the public relations industry. There is never a need to bad mouth or go after your colleagues in order to assure your measure of success. Your superiors will ultimately see right through you and you will have caused your own demise.
3. Share everything. So you’ve worked half a day creating the most accomplished media list the agency has ever seen, or so you think. Would it kill you to share it will colleagues and ultimately save them the grueling time it took you to develop it? I know, it really irks you when you believe that colleagues are taking advantage of your expertise. But in the long run, remember the adage: share and share alike.
4. Clean up your own mess. I know it’s kind of a reflex action to try to put the blame on someone else for your mistake. But learn to take it on the chin and man-up to your mistakes and clean up your own mess. No one wants to have to clean up after your mistakes. If you forgot to get out that press release, admit it and move on.
5. Don’t take things that aren’t yours. That goes for not only tangible items like your neighbor’s stapler, but also your colleague’s glory. If you weren’t responsible for that great media response learn to give kudos to your colleagues.
