We are in the full swing of the holidays now! The Christmas spirit fills the air and saturates your personal and professional life. Unfortunately, that spirit does not always have a fun, candy cane coating; there is work to be done!
Every year I begin December with the highest of hopes that this season will be the best yet. By mid-month I usually have decidedly turned into Mr. Scrooge. Not because I don’t love the holidays, but because it is usually the busiest month of the year in the PR world.
Along with the stresses of holiday shopping and planning, there is also year-end reporting, extensive media summaries, comprehensive PR plans for the following year for clients and usually a few impromptu holiday events that need to be planned and executed perfectly.
While all of these tasks can be seemingly overwhelming, it is crucial that one takes time to remember what the holidays are all about. Take a minute this season to appreciate those coworkers that you spend endless hours with. Reminisce about all of the hard work and accomplishments you achieved together over the past year and embrace all of the things you have been able to achieve professionally. Let’s be real, you spend almost as much time with your cube-mate as you do with your actual family.
No matter how stressed you may feel, don’t let that inner Scrooge or Grinch possess you. Take a moment to pat yourself on the back and congratulate yourself for working in one of the most stressful jobs of 2013. But really, Forbes did vote a Public Relations Executive the 5th Most Stressful Job of 2013, following enlisted military personnel, a military general, a firelighter and a commercial airline pilot!
I am guessing you work in PR because you love it. You thrive off of it and you can’t imagine doing anything else but what you are doing. So, be thankful that you love what you do no matter how stressed you may feel, and try to enjoy that holiday spirit that fills the air at this moment.
-Larisa Kupris, account executive
