Energy

I've been mulling over what things energise me, and what things just drain me. When I first started networking I loved the buzz of "doing the room", and never knowing who you might meet. Now, I just find that draining and resent the time spent away from work. But I do enjoy a good coffee or lunch with a strategic contact and find that can be much more enjoyable and effective.

It's something that I suggest you look at on a regular basis when it comes to doing your PR. What are the energisers and what just makes you think "ugh". If you really can't stand something I like to put it through the D-test - do you want to Delegate, Ditch or just (grit your teeth) and Do it?

You might hate cold calling journalists but it's got to be done - unless there's someone else in the office who could actually do it better than you. Likewise, if you find that the amount of writing you have to do in your campaign is literally draining you, then think about getting a copywriter in to help you move things forward.

Think about what energises you and make sure you get to do these jobs - I love writing and can't imagine delegating that part of what I do. It flows naturally and helps my clients get a feeling for my voice and my approach to PR training.

This is an efefctive exercise that I recommend putting in your diary once every six months. You may find that you can't get rid of all your energy drainers all at once, but you can certainly put together a plan to work towards it.

Millionaires

It seems that millionaires are everywhere at the moment. Of course, we've had the BBC dragons for a long time, but now even more of them have crept onto the TV. My 12 year old son and I are currently watching The Last Millionaire on BBC3. The premise is that a group of millionaires are thrown into different cities and different situations with the task of making money. In a twist on the traditional reality show, those who make the most money get to go home. No one wants to be the last millioanire left.

It's been shocking how little business sense some of these very successful people seem to have, and for two weeks running the winners actually only got to go home beause they had asked for some money upfront - and had the cash even though it could be said that they hadn't fulfilled their part of the deal.

Still, it's great TV.

It's inspired me to dig out my Millionaire MBa cds that I bought a few years ago. While I can't say that they've made me a millionaire yet, it's been interesting revisiting them - and good timing as it's giving me a good dose of enthusiasm and motivation for next year.

Paula Gardner
www.doyourownpr.com