Spectrum PR Column
October 1999
Using Public Relations as a Key to Leadership
Cheryl Gritton, Branch Librarian, U.S. Courts Library, Des Moines, Iowa
AALL Spectrum, Volume 4 No. 2 October 1999.
As I began thinking about what public relations and leadership are, I realized personal leadership flows from public relations skills. Public relations are truly a key to leadership.
So how did I get to that conclusion? I define public relations as what you do with your user when they are in your library or using your services. Marketing is part of public relations, but only the first half of the equation. Brochures, newsletters, special programs or presentations, flyers, and food in the library are all marketing tools you use to get the user into the library. Public relations begins when your marketing tools have been successful.
Good public relations relies on certain skills that anyone can master. Being knowledgeable about your subject and enthusiastic about helping your user are the two that top my list of essential skills. Honesty is a must, admit you don't know or don't have the information then take the initiative to find someone who does know, or has the information.. Be self confident, assertive, responsible and open to new ideas. Listen to your users. Follow trends, and change gracefully to meet users changing needs. Be friendly, remember you are the library.
Once you have mastered public relations, how do you get to leadership? In any organization there are two types of leaders. There are those people who, by job description, are leaders. These are the judges, partners or law professors we all work for. It is highly unlikely that in our organizations the librarian will be a leader because of position. But we can be the second type of leader, those who gain leadership based on the respect of others in the organization. This personal leadership comes from having certain skills and attributes that, again, anyone can master. Leaders are made, not born.
Volumes have been written on leadership and the skills necessary to be a good leader. Plus, we have all had experiences with leaders, both good and bad, positional and personal. Think about those good leaders you have known. What were some of their attributes? I think of good leaders as honest, knowledgeable, full of enthusiasm for their job, willing to listen to new ideas and self confident. They are also commonly described as being responsible, high achievers, pleasant even in stressful conditions and capable of influencing others. These are all skills we can master, no matter what our job title.
Do you notice the skills needed for public relations mirror those needed for leadership? As we develop the skills of good public relations we will be knowledgeable, enthusiastic, friendly, honest, flexible and self confident. These attributes instill respect from which flows personal leadership. We must not hesitate to learn these skills and open the door to leadership.
Last Updated: January 28, 2003
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