by Caroline Leach | Aug 30, 2015 | Careers, Change, Corporate Communications, Learning
A colleague recently asked me about the top three qualifications in public relations, today and in 2025.
It was for a curriculum review at a university’s journalism and mass communications school.
My first thought was about the tsunami of change we’ll see in the next 10 years. It would be easier to predict what the next three to five years will bring.
The Future Work Skills 2020 report by the Institute for the Future came to mind. Smart machines, new media and global connectivity are just some of the trends reported that will shape the future of PR and corporate communications.
For today, Tell Me About A Train Wreck, my blog post on what I’m looking for in a new hire, led me to the top qualifications for 2015:
- Critical thinking. Using reasoning and and systems thinking to make decisions and solve problems is the foundation for this field (and many others). This is a key skill in the framework for 21st century learning.
- Writing – for a social, mobile, global and video-based world. Writing reflects sound thinking. And in a world suffering from information overload, writing today has to be clear, concise and compelling.
- Business acumen. A thorough understanding of the business, the competition and the industry is key to successful PR and corp comms. Give equal weight to learning about PR and the business world.
As I started projecting future qualifications, I ended up with the same three. Yet, those will hardly be sufficient for what the world will look like a decade from now. So to those foundational skills, I would add:
- Tech savvy. This encompasses everything from video production to learning to code. As the Wall Street Journal reported, it’s about gaining “procedural literacy” and thinking about how processes work in the world. In the PR realm, it will become increasingly important to bring art (writing) and science (technology) together to engage and influence people in the future.
- Data analysis. With the explosion in data creation, it will become increasingly important to analyze data, see patterns, choose an appropriate course of action, and know how to ethically and appropriately present data to change behaviors. This is also vital to consider on a personal branding level through Michael Fertik’s The Reputation Economy.
- Creativity. This is another 21st century skill. And it’s one that’s closely linked with innovation. With data, technology and information, a creative ability enables connections and something new and fresh from considering and combining seemingly disparate ideas and concepts.
With so much to learn, where’s a good place to start?
Often, it’s by doing one new thing and taking just one step.
As a new school year kicks off, I’m recommitting to learning a new language with my Spanish studies. My husband is brushing up on his Italian, and our children are heading back for the first day of school.
What are you learning this fall?
by Caroline Leach | Aug 23, 2015 | Change, Learning
How do you ride a tsunami of information?
As Moore’s Law fades into oblivion (maybe), email has eclipsed it, doubling seemingly every season, rather than every two years.
With pings and dings every second, how do you know what’s important? What to pay attention to? And how to allocate your time?
In trying to answer to those questions, I wonder if they’re the right ones.
It’s really a matter of knowing your most important priorities and focusing your time on those. You can then crowd out the noise and distractions with benign neglect.
And there’s one more ingredient to add to the mix – scanning the environment few new ideas and opportunities. Learning where to dig deep and what to ignore.
And setting up systems to make that happen for you. Silencing pings. Blocking spam. Automating filing.
In the GTD model by David Allen, you get everything out of your head and into your organizing system. That way you don’t waste precious brainpower trying to remember an appointment or a deadline.
He calls this having a mind like water. It means your mind is free to work at its highest and best level – thinking, synthesizing and ideating.
In addition, try reading, writing and coloring. Yes, coloring.
I’m a little late to the coloring craze for adults. Apparently it launched in 2013 with the publication of Johanna Basford’s Secret Garden.
And I have Julia Cameron and The Artist’s Way to thank for it. I’ve long been a fan of her practice of morning pages. It’s three verbatim pages of longhand writing that clear your mind and prepare you for your day. And it’s another great way to achieve a “mind like water.”
But I’d never really embraced the related concept of an artist’s date – an hour for yourself each week to do something fun and engaging. The purpose? To “restock the well” and generate new ideas.
Until earlier this month. With no real agenda, I went to one of my favorite places – Barnes & Noble. Usually when I go, I have a list and a deadline. But I decided I’d wander through some new sections of the store and see what caught my eye.
It ended up being creative coloring books, for relaxation and mindfulness. The next stop was Staples for pencils, pens and crayons.
Coloring envelops your mind, focusing and freeing it. It’s somewhat like coming up with good ideas while walking or showering. It puts your brain in neutral while you create something of beauty. And even more beautiful is the ideas that flow in the process.
When you’re looking everywhere else for answers, it’s worth remembering that you already have them in yourself. Because you’ve always had the ruby slippers. You just have to click your heels.
by Caroline Leach | Jul 11, 2015 | Learning
Gracias, William Alexander.
“Very few adults who who tackle a foreign language achieve anything resembling proficiency,” he wrote in his New York Times piece, The Benefits of Failing at French.
That might be enough to dissuade me from my ever-present goal to learn to speak Spanish.
But if you persevere, he concludes, you’ll not only learn a new language, but you’ll also bulk up the synapses in your brain. You’ll do mental gymnastics that will enable to you speak a new language and increase you brain power.
This week I was inspired by the courage of an English-speaking colleague who welcomed a packed room of people in three different languages.
Having endured the good-natured ribbing of my family members when I studied Spanish a few years ago, I had great respect for this person. His pronunciation wasn’t perfect, but he moved beyond his comfort zone to show his dedication to welcoming a multi-cultural group.
And as I wrote in a recent post about working globally, learning a new language is critical to building bridges cross culturally.
For some time, “learn Spanish” has been on my list of annual goals. And every December in my year-end ritual of evaluating my progress, I haven’t yet been able to mark it as compete.
Why do I want to learn Spanish?
For starters, I live in Southern California. Close to half of the population speaks Spanish, and I should too.
If I’m speaking at a local event, I want to develop enough confidence in my pronunciation that I can at least say a few opening and closing words in Spanish.
And half of our company’s business is in Latin America, so learning to speak Spanish makes good business sense.
Spanish is the world’s number-two language based on the number of speakers, which puts it ahead of English. So it’s a logical place to start.
And I want to set a good example for my children, one studying Spanish and the other studying French.
So what’s my plan?
Over the years I’ve scoured the web, tried a class in my community and asked people for advice. Here’s what I’ve come up with.
- Rosetta Stone. This is how I started my studies before, and it’s come a long way with mobile options for my laptop, tablet and phone. I started my first module today and I’ll do 30 minutes daily. Maybe I’ll go for a stacked win from time to time and combine it with my treadmill time. At the end of each month I’ll evaluate how it’s going.
- Radio. During my commute time, I’ll listen to Spanish radio stations.
- TV. A colleague recommended watching favorite TV shows and movies in Spanish. Easy and fun to do with DIRECTV.
- TED talks. This is a good time to turn on the Spanish subtitles when I listen to new TED talks.
- Travel. My daughter went to Spain last year and said it was a life-changing experience. With my family, I’ll plan where our next trip will be. Argentina? Chile? Costa Rica?
Now there are even more reasons to learn Spanish.
Deséame suerte . . . or, wish me luck!
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