It’s basketball season! I sat down with the Sacramento Kings Senior Director of Communications Laura Braden to talk about working in the real world and the post-grad job hunt.
A Day in the Office
A typical day in PR doesn’t exist, Braden said. As a PR professional you are always plugged-in and on-call in case of a client emergency.
“I always tell people if you are looking for a personal life, public relations is not for you,” Braden said.
The media isn’t a 24-hour news cycle anymore thanks to Twitter and other social media, she said. People want second to second updates now.
Her day starts at home checking emails and news feeds to catch up on the Kings and the PR world. After responding to emails received throughout the night, she heads to the Sleep Train Arena office.
Braden said she wakes up daily with a to-do list and a plan that could be thrown-out at a moments notice, if a crisis arises.
“You’re putting out fires or this amazing interview opportunity comes up, and you can’t say no, and they want to do it at 2 o’clock, and it’s 1:30, so you’re scrambling to make it work,” Braden said.
The rest of her day is filled with meetings and more emails. The stress and the pace is a constant to her daily routine, she said.
“But every day is different and that’s what keeps it fun and challenging,” said Braden.
The New Arena
The Kings current project is the construction of the arena in downtown Sacramento, the Sacramento ESC. The project promotes the progress of the demolition and construction of the new arena, but also highlights the downtown Sacramento community.
“Our strategy is to create this kind of strong community,” said Braden “We want to be a good neighbor and partner to the groups and people that work around us.”
She directs the business PR that focuses on the NBA 3.0, Vivek Ranadivé’s philosophy based on globalization, community and technology, Braden said. She is part of nearly all external communication, from news conferences to big announcement-events.
But her work day is just getting started after the meetings and emails. After hours she is extremely active in the Sacramento community. After all, engaging in the community is incredibly important to her job, she said.
“It’s good to be out in the community and receiving feedback and hearing about what’s going on,” Braden said. “When you work for the Kings people want to know what the Kings are up to, and they also have lots of feedback for you.”
Tips for the Job Hunt
Graduation is quickly approaching meaning the post-grad job hunt is right around the corner. Saying good-bye to the comforts of college and hello to the realities of the real world begins to set in.
“The hardest job you will ever get is your first one,” Braden said.
Five Pieces of Advice
- The more real life experiences you can get the better.
- Figure out what makes you unique and own it and sell it.
- What really matters is: what is on your resume, who you know and what you know.
- Your resume isn’t an archive of all the things you’ve done, it is a reflection of what you think you can bring to a particular job.
- Keep whatever is making you money on there because that shows you’re able to juggle multiple hats, and you can handle full-time employment.
– Sarah Winning, social media director