This post is going to be a little different. This week I feel as though I am finally coming to terms with the end of my 36-year communications career. As I started to reflect on all the hard work I have done and great people I have worked with, I also got to thinking about all the things that, despite advances in technology, have not changed much when it comes to how others see communications work.
And so, with this post, I want to recognize and validate all the things people in our profession put up with–things that have gotten marginally better, but not a whole lot, since I started doing comms work in 1989. We are still undervalued, gaslighted, dismissed, and disrespected quite often. (I don’t think it’s a stretch to say that this happens more to the women in the profession, who, at least in my experience make up the majority of our field.)
And so, to my fellow communicators, please know that you are not alone, you are not crazy. It’s not just you. It’s the system. This post is for you, in recognition and validation for all of:
The times you were introduced to people visiting the office as the person or team that “makes things pretty.”
The times you were asked to fix a hopelessly messed-up Word document that doesn’t have anything to do with your actual job.
The times you were asked to take notes or be the scribe in a meeting because it involved writing things down, which is obviously what communications people do.
The times you saw a reputational risk coming over the horizon, gave your professional advice about handling it with clear communication, were told you were over-reacting or were disregarded, all hell broke loose, and you were then expected to clean up the mess.
The times the organization rolled out a major change (or several at the same time), didn’t consult you about how to communicate about it, and chaos resulted.
The times you were not included in conversations requiring communication plans until after the whole project was already planned.
The times people asked for a communications plan for a project that didn’t even have a defined purpose, project plan, or timeline.
The times you asked why the audience would care about a project and the answer was “because it’s important.”
The times you never got a seat at the table but were instead sent a mile-long email in which you were assigned numerous tasks.
The times you were asked to develop content at the last minute with no context and no good reason for the insane deadline.
The times you were given a 50-page document to edit (and usually format – you know, make it pretty) and an hour to do it.
The times you were expected to write and distribute a press release about things that were decidedly not newsworthy and then questioned or criticized when they didn’t get published. (Or worse, forced to call reporters to follow up and had to pretend you thought the release was worth their time.)
The times someone lectured, talked down to you, or dismissed your input because you couldn’t possibly understand the subject matter that you work with every single day.
The times someone tried to tell you how to do your job.
The times you heard “anyone can do communications.”
The times someone was hired or promoted to a senior or supervisory communications leadership role with no communications experience.
The times someone went rogue on social media, or violated brand guidelines, and you had to be the bad guy and call them on it (and also clean it up.)
The times you had to bite your tongue and push out content that was inauthentic and ick in the name of public relations.
The times you smiled, nodded and said you would think about it when someone had a really dumb idea for a story.
The times you were given all the responsibility but no authority.
The times you were the only one in the organization handling communications, marketing, graphic design, publishing, media, web site management, and usually event planning or some other random thing, and no one thought it was too much.
The times you were woefully under-resourced and resentful but kept going for the good of the cause.
The times your budget was cut because money was tight, and obviously communications isn’t vital to organizational operations.
The times a consultant was hired and paid big bucks to help “raise the organization’s profile” or “create a communications campaign” but you ended up doing all the work and getting no recognition or extra pay.
The times you recommended the organization hire a consultant to advise them on things you have advised them on repeatedly just so they actually might listen.
The times you and/or your team was disrespected and underappreciated.
The times you sent a very clear and concise message asking for specific information and either got no response or got lord-knows-what back in return.
The times you wish you hadn’t even asked.
I’m sure I missed many things, but these were trends I saw across my career. I hope that those of you in the profession are seen and respected for all you do. I see you!
Keep doing the good work. It’s important!!
What Will Transpire? 
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