June President’s Message: Time for Summer Reading!

As things (hopefully) slow down a bit, it’s time to pull together a summer reading list. Why not include a few Public Relations and Communications titles? Before the eye roll slides too far back in your head, consider the following hot picks:

This is Marketing: You Can’t Be Seen Until You Learn to See
By Seth Godin
There’s a reason why Seth Godin’s blog is the most popular marketing blog in the world. He has a unique understanding of audiences and a relatable way of explaining nuances and insights. This book helps you “see” why other people develop habits and how behavior can possibly be changed. You’ll be jotting notes to apply to either your personal relationships or target messages for work.

Diverse Voices: Profiles in Leadership
Foreword by Harold Burson, Edited by Shelley & Barry Spector
Published in partnership with the Museum of Public Relations, Diverse Voices features interviews with more than 40 multicultural corporate, organizational and agency leaders.  These executives share candid anecdotes detailing successes and challenges that they faced during their career, as well as tips and lessons for those entering the field.  In other words, we all need to read and learn from experiences other than our own. All proceeds benefit the PRSA Foundation.

Frenemies: The Epic Disruption of the Disruption of the Ad Business (and Everything Else)
By Ken Auletta
“Frenemies is essential reading, not simply because of what it says about this world, but because of the potential consequences: the survival of media as we know it depends on the money generated by advertising and marketing–revenue that is in peril in the face of technological changes and the fraying trust between the industry’s key players.” YUP!

Atomic Habits
By James Clear
Making a big change can seem overwhelming, but author James Clear breaks it down into a series of more manageable, small adjustments. It’s about building a system bit-by-bit to support change, not launching head-on into meeting a lofty goal. Makes perfect sense.

Year of Yes: How to Dance It Out, Stand In the Sun and Be Your Own Person
By Shonda Rimes
This is our PRSA Richmond theme this year…and the book is the perfect summer read. Shonda Rimes is a talented writer, captivating speaker, caring mother – and she struggled mightily in reaching her potential in each of these callings. In this wildly entertaining read, she shares how she flipped the script for one calendar year – saying ‘yes’ to everything she otherwise would instinctively turn down. We’re along for the ride, learning the real economics of valuing equity, inclusion – and valuing the contributions of individuals for their very uniqueness.

Let me know your thoughts on these books . . . and on any others that inform your career and development as a person. That’s what reading is for!

Judi Crenshaw, APR
President, PRSA Richmond