It's 12.19 pm GMT, and I've been working since 7am. It's generally believed that people in the PR industry are free-loading, blagging airheads who waft from party to goodie-bag to launch to goodie-bag to private view to goodie-bag ... not so.
PR is hard work but, if you're the right kind of animal, it's a great business. Here are the true professional requirements for a career in PR:
Strong communication instincts : you want to tell the world about things.
Literacy : you need to be master of those powerful tools: words and images.
Wit : you need to enjoy language and playing with language.
Determination : more than anything, you want to put your clients in the news.
Humour : indispensible tool for most kinds of marketing.
Showmanship : remember the great Barnum quote: "Every crowd has a silver lining".
Generosity of spirit : you need to subvert your own ego if you want fame for your clients.
Technophilia : you need to embrace new media for the power they give us.
This doesn't mean I don't like goodie-bags. Or other bags: while going to all those private views, I've been developing my own art collection, and this is (I think) about handbags, brands and things: 'Blood Red' by Sarah Bradstone.
