Comments on: Public Relations is spin.

By: What the Personal Branding Debate Can Teach Us about PR, Social Media & Ourselves at Personal PR

Fri, 08 May 2009 05:25:41 +0000

[...] “Personal PR” at first glance? My friend and I debated. Personal, for one, sounds selfish. And PR typically brings to mind spin, at worst, and publicity, at best. Which both seem at face value to be self-centered concepts [...]

By: KateNonymous

KateNonymous — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 17:43:38 +0000

I think people outside the industry use it in a much less judgmental way. That said, if people were reacting negatively, maybe she should dial back her use of the word (sounds like she over-used it anyway, and maybe that’s part of what people were reacting to).

If you want to re-define a word, sometimes it helps to take a break from the word.

By: zoe siskos

zoe siskos — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 14:59:34 +0000

@Patrick – I think I could have written a blog post on each to the points she went through during that presentation. I agree, she was very refreshing and uplifting.

I remember in university, people telling me that careers were changing and that the idea of sticking it out in one job for a long time will be unheard of. Penelope seems to be right on top of that concept.

@Penelope – It IS a desirable skill! Glad to know your friends agree. Some of mine look at me crossed-eyed but hopefully your speech will have shed some light on it.

Thanks to both of you for visiting!

By: Penelope Trunk

Penelope Trunk — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 14:08:40 +0000

Hi, Zoe. You summarize the problem so well when you say that it’s the PR people who have the biggest problem with the word spin. I see most of my friends using the word freely, in many contexts, in a positive way. And I see PR professionals as having the ability to give themselves an edge in the workplace by being good at something that everyone else wishes they were good at: spin.

Penelope

By: Patrick

Patrick — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 14:05:33 +0000

I appreciate your review of Penelope Trunk’s presentation at PRSA’s conference in Detroit. I attended her speech as well, and found her to be a refreshing change of pace from the typical conference speaker.

I saw more eyes roll when she suggested it is far better for individuals to build their own personal brands as opposed to being entirely associated with an agency or company. Her suggestion that a practitioner spend no more than 18 months at a job also gave many a reason to pause. But perhaps they were the owners of agencies concerned about young professionals taking her suggestion to heart.