How PR can prepare you for parenting
Quite a few skills that can be learned from work in public relations can translate to child-rearing. Here are some of the major ones.
There are few things in life more challenging than becoming a first-time parent.
You go from living a relatively unrestricted lifestyle to constantly responding to a tiny human that demands your attention 24/7. It makes client management and PR work seem like a walk in the park.
Having just returned from three months of maternity leave, I’ve learned that being a new parent and being a public relations executive carry a number of similarities. I’ve identified five key abilities that I learned from the last eight years in a PR agency that I use to carry out both jobs successfully:
1. Anticipate needs.
Keeping your baby happy and yourself sane is all about anticipating needs. If you can figure out when your baby is going to need to be fed, have her diaper changed, and take her nap you will already avoid a good percentage of meltdowns. Plus, even as a newborn, your baby will start to learn that she doesn’t have to let out a shrieking cry every time she wants something, because Mama is usually anticipating her needs.
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