This post comes from Heather Huhman, media relations manager at the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA).
After reading Allie’s post about a day in the life at her Edelman job, I contacted her offering my story. Every PR pro will tell you there really isn’t a typical day, and it’s true. What I’ve outlined below is very different than what today will bring.
As a brief introduction, I’m the media relations manager at the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA), a national, nonprofit health care professional association. I’m a one-woman show, although I’m trying to get an intern. (My boss tells me if I didn’t come up with so many wonderful ideas I wouldn’t need an intern!)
I absolutely love my job, but it was a long road getting to this point. I put in my time at the agencies—both big and small—like everyone else. But, I ultimately knew I’d end up at a nonprofit. Most of my clients over the years have been nonprofits. I find the work truly rewarding, especially working for a health care nonprofit. Every day I’m helping people live longer, healthier lives. What’s better than that? Plus, my co-workers and boss are all fantastic people.
Other than AOTA, I’m also the entry-level careers columnist for Examiner.com—another job I truly enjoy.
While I don’t have a video like Allie, picture in your mind what I’ve written below. I’m sure I’ve left out many details, such as checking e-mail and keeping up with Twitter. But, you get the picture—my days are crazy!
- 4:30 AM Wake up; get ready for the gym
- 5:30 AM Arrive at the gym and begin workout
- 6:30 AM Head home to shower and get ready for work
- 7:10 AM Catch the train; begin writing today’s Examiner.com article
- 7:30 AM Arrive at work; continue writing today’s Examiner.com article
- 8:00 AM Complete and post today’s Examiner.com article
- 8:05 AM Read the news; media clipping
- 9:00 AM Teleconference with The University of North Carolina PR rep re: autism and occupational therapy research press release
- 9:20 AM Review peer-reviewed journal article for newsworthy talking points
- 10:00 AM Begin writing press release
- 11:30 AM Print off press release and proof for boss’ review
- 11:47 AM Print off documents for boss’ review, including press release, trade press article and two fact sheets (I’ve been working from home the past two days—work has piled up!)
- 11:49 AM Begin editing and updating last year’s Occupational Therapy Month materials, including Ten Things You Can Do to Celebrate OT Month, OT Month Sample Press Release, Public Service Commercial Radio Announcements, Public Service Public Radio/TV Announcements, Tips on Reaching the Media and Tips on Talking to the Public
- 1:30 PM Stomach is growling—heading to the kitchen to heat up lunch
- 1:50 PM Ok, back to work on OT Month materials
- 2:00 PM It’s the budgeting time of year for us, so I jump on a teleconference with a potential vendor
- 2:26 PM Again, back to work on OT Month materials
- 2:45 PM Call from a member’s PR rep wanting more information about OT Month
- 3:00 PM Turned in first round of OT Month materials to my boss for review; scheduled a meeting with the policy team for tomorrow to discuss autism and OT legislative issues for a one-pager
- 3:15 PM Prepping for a meeting with my boss
- 3:30 PM Meeting with my boss
- 4:00 PM Returned a member call re: information to include in a press release
- 4:36 PM “Finalized” press release for researcher review based on my boss’ feedback
- 4:41 PM Interview with a staff expert to respond to a media inquiry
- 5:01 PM E-mailed a response to the reporter; heading out to work from home
- 5:36 PM Arrived home; checking e-mail and sending responses
- 6:30 PM Time to call it quits for the day!
Feel free to e-mail me at heather@heatherhuhman.com with any questions or follow me on Twitter for internship/job leads and PR advice!
If you’d like to share your day in the life, get in touch and I’ll post it on the blog.