Hello All! It has come to the point in my term when I say goodbye. It is bittersweet, but a very good type of bittersweet. Currently, I am a candidate for Masters degree, but come Friday, July 26th I will be walking across the stage at Troy University receiving my Master of Science in Strategic Communication. Honestly, it is hard to believe that the time has finally come for me to move my tassel to the side one final time. After the hard work, long hours and dedication I have put in the time has finally come. It is hard for me to wrap my mind around that fact that I will be done with school, forever. Schooling has made up most of my life. Honestly, it will be strange not having to open up a book, take a final or stress over the dreaded comprehensive exam. (It was the longest three weeks of my life waiting for those results!) Receiving my Masters degree was something I had always planned to do. I am so happy that I waited because I was able to continue my education at a university I love so much with the same professors that had guided me through my undergraduate studies. As I walk across that stage I cannot wait to look into the audience and see the two people that made this moment possible. I know that I have been blessed with the two best parents anyone could ask for. They have nurtured me and given me opportunities that most children only dream of. They have supported me in every way imaginable and knowing that I have made them proud is a joy that fills my heart like no other. I am extremely proud to be their daughter. Everything I have ever done, accomplished and succeeded at is because I knew I had two people who were always in my corner. Two people that would stand beside me no matter what. Two people that would be there to pick me up when I fall and tell me to keep going; that I could do it. Most of all, two people that have always been there to love me and give me encouragement when no one else's words could give me strength and determination. I love them with all of my heart and it means the world to me that I will have them there. Of course, I wouldn't expect any less. They have been there for every important milestone in my life and I expect it continue long after the cap has been thrown.
Have you ever thought about how your body language describes how other people see you? To me, body language is just the same as a first impresssion. If you get a bad first impression of someone the chances are you aren't going to change the way you feel about the person. Or, it will take a lot of effort on the part of the person to change your mind. The same can be said for body language. A first impression can easily be gathered by someone's body language. For instance, if you are at a gathering or a party and you see someone that you have never met, standing alone on a wall and not speaking to anyone, your fist impression of that person is that he/she is shy. That is given away by the person's body language. However, if you see another person easily chatting away with people at the food table or at the drink stand then your first impression of that person goes to outgoing. Understanding people by their body language is just the way we are. It is human nature to "judge" someone on first impressions. Yes, some people do take getting to know before they lighten up and talk, but that doesn't change the fact that he/she is a shy person.
You can easily pick out the people that are confident in what they are doing just from their body language. For instance, if you ever pay attention to an artist at a concert. Most of them are "in charge" of their arena. They know exactly what their fans want to see or here. Their confidence in their talent is shown through their body language which is then picked up by the audience. It doesn't just have to be a singer; it can be anyone confiedent in what they are doing. Michael Phelps always tended to spread his arms out and throw his head back when he won a race at the Olympics. That body language showed his excitement in what he had just accomplished. Today, Phil Mickelson won the British Open for the first time in his career. After he made the winning putt his eyes brimmed with tears, which showed the emotion he felt over his win. Body language appeals to the person or personality displaying it. An example of an artist that does this is Stevie Nicks. Throughout her concerts she constantly twirls or floats around the stage. She has always done this, which play on the fact that she is free spirit or a "hippie" if you will. It is just her personality. Or, when Reba finishes a show she always raises her arms into a T, as if she is soaking in all of the applause. She is a strong woman who knows her talent and knows how hard she had to work in a mans world.
Everytime you look at someone you can gather a great deal of information just through their body language. In today's world body language has also made its way into the digital world. Through emoticons, that is. You can tell a lot about how a person is feeling through one little emoticon that send through text message, tweet or facebook status. I'm not gonna lie; when I talk to my mom over Facebook and she sends me a heart ( <3 ) it makes me a smile. Even though I am not physically in the room with my mom or whoever I am talking to when they send an emoticon it automatically lets me know how they are feeling. Always remember that people are watching you. Someone will always "judge" you by the way your body reacts when you hear a question or when your in situation you aren't comfortable. We are all very transparent and we become even more transparent through body language.
The topic of crisis communication has ended up becoming a major part of my studies in Strategic Communication. Going into this program I had never given much thought to it. Yes, I had heard about the Tylenol incident from the 1980's, but I had never actually studied it or realized how much effort and planning the company put into it to make sure things were handled properly. Crisis management is a major aspect to any company and is highly important in the success. No company wants to encounter a crisis, but when it does happen a plan needs to have been put in place, but that's not the only thing that is important.
Having a crisis management plan is fantastic, but if the company doesn't have a leader who will manage the crisis correctly then it will be of no use at all. Leaders must face reality when a crisis occurs. They should except what has happened, "take the bulls by the horns" and turn the crisis into something that helps the company, not destroys it. I mentioned the Tylenol poisoning from the 1980's. Instead of shying away from the media or lying to the public the company was straightforward and honest. They were open with the public and explained that they were doing everything humanly possible to find out how the poison got into the pills and who did it. They also had to reassure the public that this would never happen again. All three of the companies promises was s success and they proved to the people that the company could be trusted. Tylenol is still going strong today. A company never wants their leader to lie to the public, especially to the media. If the media turns on you it is never a good thing. You want them on your side if something goes wrong.
In today's world a company not only has the media to help them, but there is also this little thing called social media. It is so much easier and quicker to get the word out now than it used to be things to Facebook, Twitter and even blogs. Yes, a blog. Blogs are a great way to get information out, especially if what needs to be said is longer than 140 characters or not suitable for a Facebook post. It doesn't take long at all to type up your feelings and hit "Publish." Within seconds your thoughts and feelings have been let loose to the rest of the world. It is pretty incredible. A leader and a company must utitlize these opportunities to reach out to the public in the wake of a crisis. What better way to reach your audience than to reach out to them through social media? A quick Facebook post in the wake of a disaster could do wonders. The rules of social media are no different than those with the media. Honesty is of the upmost important thing. Do not lie to the public because there is no denying that the truth will eventually come out. When that happens you are most likely to have caused more problems than you would have if you had initially told the truth. No one likes being lied too, no matter what the circumstances are. That old saying, "Honesty is the best policy" holds true in times of managing a crisis. Managing a crisis can be difficult work, but in the long run it will pay off. As mentioned in one of my readings, try to use the crisis as an advantage. Use it to make the changes that you hadn't made before. Tylenol came out on top and is a great example to go by when writing a crisis plan. Don't be afraid to act when something happens. Take the charge of the situation and if a company does that they will be successful in managing the crisis.
How many of you pay attention to advertisements? Do you actually watch the commercial when it comes on the television or do you flip to another channel? The one thing that always keeps me tuned into a commerical is if it catches the eye. For example, I cannot skip over the a current AT&T commercial even if I wanted too. Do I have AT&T? No. Do these commercials make me want AT&T? Yes. The reason behind my thinking is because they are catchy little ads that get stuck in my head. My brother and I go around quoting these commericals all the time. One in particular...
The point of any advertisement is to get a person's attention. When a company does these advertisements they are marketing their brand. For instance, how many of you actually pay attention to the point behind the commerical that I just posted? I, for one, didn't pay a whole lot of attention to it until I started trying to figure out the reasoning behind the commercial. AT&T's brand throughout this advertisement is "Faster is Better," which is put into focus by using the children to get the point across. "What's something that's slow that you wish was fast?" That one question curtailed into humorous answers by the children, but the real point was that we want our phones/internet to be faster. It's a quirky and fun way to get the message across, which is what needs to be done when an organization is advertising their brand.
In a video that I recently watched a man by the name of Morgan Spurlock went around asking people how they would describe their brand. It got me thinking. What is my brand? After some thought I guess I could describe myself as humorous and loyal along with my style being sort of conservative hippie. Do I consider myself a hippie? No, but I do like the clothes, which is why I use it do describe my sense of dress. What can I say...I'm a sucker for the chiffon, flowy skirts and funky patterns. Mr. Spurlock gave two different types of brands; one being an Up Attribute and the other a Down Attribute. The Up Attributes include being playful, fresh, magical/mystical and edgy. On the other side of that is the Down Attribute which includes being mindful, sophisticated, traditional, safe and reliable. These attributes will help you understand what kind of "brand" you are. It is not only big companies and businesses that have a brand. Think of it this way...Stevie Nicks has a brand. Her brand revolves around her wearing black chiffon, moving around on stage like a witch and banging her tambourine. She established this brand 35 years ago and it still is who she is. That is her identity.
Everyone has an identity, a brand. It is what makes people who they are and a business a success or failure. Whether you realize it or not, you are a brand. How would you describe yourself? Have you ever actually thought about it? When you establish a brand, as a person or a company, it is a lot to live up to because once that brand is established it must be kept. For instance, Paula Deen had an established brand. For many people, her brand has been tarnished after the "scandal" that came out a couple of weeks ago. For others, myself included, I feel that she made a mistake 30 years ago and that's all that needs to be said about it. Words for the wise - it doesn't take much for a brand to be torn down, but it will take a long time for it to be rebuilt.
