how-to – Page 3 – Tehama Group Communications

April 4, 2015March 16, 2017

Tips for building a successful personal brand

As college students, many of us are unfamiliar with the concept of personal branding.

However as graduation approaches and the job hunt begins, it becomes clear that having an established personal brand is crucial in differentiating yourself from the competition. It is a combination of who you are as a person and who you are professionally.

Are you someone that would fit into that company’s corporate culture?
Are you a pleasant and well-rounded person to work with?

Your personal brand can be worth just as much as skills and experience on a resume.

Be true to who you are.

The first step of establishing a personal brand is knowing yourself. Embracing your quirks and differences is key because each of us has the ability to bring something new to the table. Think about all the aspects that make up your personality. What are your passions or hobbies? Stay true to yourself and hold yourself with confidence. This can make all the difference when networking and interviewing for jobs.

Know your values and beliefs.

Whether it’s having a strong work ethic or believing that everyone’s ideas deserve to be heard, know what your core values and beliefs are and stick to them. Your morals are an essential part of your personal brand because they affect decisions you make, both in and out of the workplace.

It’s not just who you are in a professional setting.

Personal branding includes your appearance and behavior in the office and out on the town. Believe it or not, the way you carry yourself outside of work impacts your personal brand, so it is important to always represent yourself in a classy way. This also includes posts and pictures on social media accounts. Before you post, think about if your future employer saw your Facebook or Instagram pictures. How do you want to portray yourself?

Show your personality and sense of humor on social media.

We have all heard that it is necessary to have an active social media presence when applying for jobs. To make your profile stand out against other post-grads, show your unique personality wherever you can. Have a witty and creative bio summary on LinkedIn. Post thoughtful and relevant information regularly on Twitter. Show that you are engaged in the industry that you wish to be hired in. But remember to always make sure the content you post is appropriate and tasteful.

Have a solid elevator pitch.

Whether you’re attending a career fair or a job interview, you need to be able to sum up who you are and why you’re worth hiring in a minute or less. You may need to practice your elevator pitch to make sure you get your main points across. This will be the first impression you give to potential employers, so it is paramount that you sell your personality and skill set as much as possible.

Photo credit : Daryl Scott

by Diana Gallagher, assistant account executive

March 6, 2015March 16, 2017

Confidence is key – How to be a confident leader

When it comes to the professional world, confidence is key. Successful people will tell you to have a confident handshake, a confident gaze and to dress like a confident business person.

If you do all these things right, you will come off as a confident person. But if your confidence is a façade, it can only last so long.

In my six weeks of being an account executive at Tehama Group Communications, I’ve learned you must have inner confidence before outer confidence can flourish. “Fake it ‘til you make it” doesn’t actually work when you are trying to lead a team of people who count on you to call the shots.

I have always thought of myself to be a self-assertive. Yet when I began my internship at TGC, I found that I was doubting and second-guessing myself. The time came for me to be a leader and suddenly that confidence was gone.

My confidence had never really been put to the test before. A firm handshake and a great business outfit got me through the door, but the rest was up to me to prove my self-assertiveness. From the first week of my internship to now, I’ve learned a lot about how to maintain my self-confidence, even when I’m feeling doubtful.

Image courtesy of leadersinhighheals.com

Get organized and take charge.

You cannot be a confident leader if you do not properly plan. When it comes to conducting a meeting, make sure to create an agenda and know what you will say once the meeting begins. Keep control of the conversation. There will be some off-topic comments, but keep control of the tasks that need to be covered so the meeting stays on track.

Connect with your team.

No one wants to take direction from someone who seems disinterested in the people around them. Connect with the people you are working with and establish a relationship in the first stages of a project. Not only will they see you as less of a tyrant just rattling out order but they will be more inclined to churn out their best work every time they’re tasked with something.

Create a power mantra.

I recently started taking yoga classes and made my mantra, “You are confident, strong and centered.” It sounds cheesy, but convincing yourself of your own abilities can have a hugely positive effect on your psyche. Even if you’re not into the mantra idea, yoga classes may help clear your mind, which can also help you steer clear of being an overbearing leader.

Don’t be afraid to ask for help.

It is good to remember that your confidence can always be improved simply by asking for guidance. Confident people are not invincible, and can still make mistakes.Asking for help is what led me to become more confident in my capabilities as a leader. It reassured me that being a leader is a learning process, that takes time and experience.

by Jane Eveland, Account Executive

February 20, 2015March 16, 2017

8 interviewing tips for writers

To craft the perfect press release, newsletter article or blog post, PR pros must know how to effectively interview insiders. The following eight tips will help you get the most out of your sources, from business executives to eccentric chefs.

1. Don’t limit your notes to a Q&A format.

It may seem logical to write down all of your must-ask questions with three or four lines in between for responses, but this format can limit the flow of conversation. It’s easy to forget about follow-up questions if you’re focused on making your way down a list.

Instead try writing your most important questions at the top of the page for reference. As you interview, note which questions you still need to ask, and work them in when the conversation slows.

2. Be personable.

It can be very awkward if an interviewer asks question after question and never looks their source in the eye. Ask follow-up questions, show interest and if you’re meeting face-to-face, remember to look up often.

3. Establish purpose.

Make sure your source understands the purpose of the piece you are writing. If you hope to capture the personality of a business owner for a feature story, don’t let your source talk finance for 20 minutes.

4. Limit initial research.

PR pros sometimes serve as translators between industry experts and the public. It’s important to have a basic understanding of the topic before an interview, but don’t do too much research.

It will be much easier to decide what information is important and what information needs to be simplified if you come to the interview knowing just enough to formulate effective questions.

5. Hunt down direct quotes.

Direct quotes establish credibility, express personality and add color to written work. Being mindful of possible quotes during an interview will save you a lot of time in the writing process.

When your source says something particularly helpful, interesting or entertaining, glance at your recorder and jot down the time elapsed. This way it’ll be easy to replay that part of the conversation and get a strong, accurate quote for your piece.

6. Get personal-ity.

When writing a piece in which a person is the subject, remember to capture the individual’s personality.

Ask personal questions, get your source’s opinion and, when possible, observe your source’s nonverbal behavior. What are they wearing? Do they have an interesting smile, laugh or habit? Some of the best feature story leads are drawn from personality.

7. Ask for help eliminating jargon.

Save a lot of time translating terms by asking your source to explain industry jargon in common language. Don’t worry about sounding uninformed, and ask a few questions that focus on the general public’s understanding.

8. Observe your subject in action.

When time allows, witness your subject at work. Whether you’re in the kitchen with a local chef or exploring the features of a new tech item, it’s easier to report on what you’ve seen firsthand.

Keep in mind that as you interview, your sources are observing you in action. Consider these tips to improve your interview conduct and impress the people who supply you with interesting content.

By Jessica Barber, Account Executive

April 8, 2013March 17, 2017

Eat Great on a Budget

Nothing we all do is more important to our health, or more ignored in American culture, than the simple act of eating.

I understand that we are college students; we are not in any way wealthy. Eating healthy is expensive…right?

It doesn’t have to be. You can eat healthier for less than $50 a week. That’s right, you can eat better all week for less than a night out at The Bear, and have meals like this:

Looks good, huh? Here’s how to do it:

The List

I made the commitment to eat healthy and took a trip to the store. I was drawn to the tortilla chips, Oreos, and canned chilli that have so far been the staples of my diet, but I refrained. What I bought was almost enough to require two trips:

2 Avocados– $1.16
1 Bunch of Bananas– $1.40
1 Broccoli Crown– $.26
5 Carrots– $.46
1 Head of Lettuce– $.99
4 Apples– $2.29
1 Bunch of Asparagus– $1.44
1 Red Onion– $1.06
4 Oranges– $.89
4 Red Potatoes– $.94
3 Roma Tomatoes– $.70
1 Bag of Brown Rice – $1.16
1 Bag of Lentils– $.86
2 Cans of Tomato Sauce– $.50
1 Package of Pasta Sauce Seasoning– $1.29
1 Package Pasta (Vermicelli)– $1.79
1 Tub of Yogurt– $2.48
1 Dozen Organic Eggs– $3.48
1 Package of Chicken Breasts– $9.91
1 Package of Steaks– $9.71

Grand total: $42.76

Not bad, and it got the cat intrigued.

There is a lot you can do with this list. You could grill up a few chicken breasts with some steamed veggies for dinner. Then, for breakfast the next day, you could throw in a few leftover veggies into an omelet with some salt and pepper, and use the leftover chicken in a salad.

As a snack, take a banana and an apple with you to school. When you’re ready for lunch, bust out the chicken caesar salad you made with the leftover chicken and veggies. Then for dinner, make a beef stew with potatoes, onions, carrots, and lentils and start the whole cycle over again.

It’s actually kind of fun to cook your own meals and taking the time to plan your meals will make you happier and healthier. Check out Epicurious–which has a fantastic iPad app that allows you to search by ingredient–and Gojee’s food section for solid recipe ideas.

Here’s a few tips I’ve learned:

1. Shop at FoodMaxx

FoodMaxx has a great selection of produce for cheap, and their meat is not that bad. If you’re broke like most of us, this is the place to shop.

2. Buy just what you need

You don’t need a whole flat of strawberries. While wholesale shopping might seem like a good way to save money, for a college student it could end up costing when food starts to go bad. Instead, try to plan your meals and buy just what you need for that week.

Except nuts. Always buy nuts in bulk.

3. Keep it simple

Shop for things that hit all the major food groups, but don’t get carried away. Limit what you buy to what you actually plan to eat. Sure, that sack of grapes looks good, but are you really going to eat all of them? Put them back.

4. Cook with leftovers

This goes without saying, but a lot of people forget that you can use last night’s extras in today’s meals. Throw some of that leftover chicken in some pasta and diced tomatoes to create a great dinner dish that’s done in eight minutes.

I hope this helps get you started. Look up some recipes online and go to town, I promise you won’t regret it.

March 15, 2013March 18, 2017

Web Design 101

For those of you who don’t know anything about Web design, I will be sharing my top three important rules to keep users from leaving your site.

1. Don’t make your users think. Now, I’m not saying your users are too dumb to figure it out, the point is that we, as Web designers don’t want our users to leave our site out of frustration because they can’t find your navigation bar or things don’t load properly.

TIPS: It’s good to be different but don’t change the user experience so much that users can’t find anything.

2. KIS (keep it simple) This ties heavily back into not making your users think. If your site’s content, images and links are thrown onto a Web page with no clear structure, your user will leave.

TIPS: Create a template and use that design throughout all your pages.

3. Make use of effective writing. Writing for the Web is completely different than writing a novel. The idea here is to provide just enough content for your users without overwhelming them or creating large chunks of text that will make your user leave.

TIPS: Break up the content using bullet points. Highlight or bold certain words to draw attention.

If you want more helpful rules and guidelines to follow, check out this article featured in Smashing Magazine!

Need a new idea? Visit Awwwards, it is full of brilliant and inspirational Website designs. (Remember: DON’T copy! These are for inspiration only!)

Good Luck!