The Dictionary sort of definition for Public Relations is that,its an area of expertise which has,enhancing something or someone's reputation and showing it in best light,as its main goal.Its basically a reputation protector or a face saver or something like that.
In today's world,the line that the demarcates "good" and "made to look good" is so fine..That FINE has to have a new fine word to define itself.Well,if i'm still unclear as to the point i'm trying to make then this is what it is..when you see the most beautiful-exactly-what-you-needed-bang-on advertisement of a product,is that what you get when you buy that thing that you saw? Or is it not quite what you saw?Is the PR industry projecting it way better than the production industry or packaging industry or whatever industry which is actually making it?!?
Yes Ladies and Gentlemen....Welcome to the World of Faux Par Excellence !!
There's a story behind this story.
This tale runs in retrospective mode and the pieces fit in as realization dawns upon me.Up until a few months i was with two friends who started dating a few years back and became one of those stick-to-each-other 24*7 couple!It was the perfect picture and they were so crazy about each other that,EVEN "crazy" forgot its limits when it came to them.They finished each other's sentences,food,work..to (YOU NAME IT!)from waking up in the morning or taking an exam,it was confusing to the layman's eyes as to what was whose responsibility.The line of demarcation had become so fuzzy between the two individuals that for us,it was a matter of great feat that we were able to tell them apart!For them.."WE" had not only replaced "I"(like most normal couples) but the whole alphabet range when they were together.
So? What was the point of concern in this lovebirds' story? I.
(DISCLAIMER: And i speak only for myself here,not for all of "us" related to them.)
Well,it so happened that I was(at least in my head and very very sincerely from my side)pretty close to them both.As a result of which,when the glass shattered and their bitter-est break up happened,the likes of yours truly was squished on more than one occasions and so i was one of the people who struggled and juggled to strike a balance to maintain my relationship with both of them.THAT'S WHEN IT BECAME CRYSTAL CLEAR!
In the course of all the struggling and juggling,i realized how i never had a relationship with the "both" of them.It wasn't the both of them who remembered my birthday.It wasn't the both of them lending me a shoulder when i needed the most.It wasn't the both of them worried about my health.It wasn't the both of them who loved me the way i was made to believe...It wasn't the both of them Blah Blah and Blah.It wasn't the both of them EVER in anything.
It was in fact one of them,making the other one look good.
*CRASH LANDING*
It was always one of them handling the PR for the other at all times,making not only that person an angel but also making people like me,feel like utter fools on our happy-realization-day!
Suddenly your take on all the previous events changes..all your happy memories with your favorite people become blotchy flabbergasting revelations with someone who didn't even care an iota bit.
Blame it on the PR-par excellence?Or the PR Manager? Or your exceptionally blindfolded judgement?
Well.I'm definitely not one to answer THAT after being crowned the fool here.But what i did know in the end was that.. who was and who wasn't the one in bad light.Who had a good intention there and who didn't care genuinely became much more easy to fathom..
As for the storytelling.Yes,this is it.The story behind this story.
My thought bubbles from my retrospective realization.
What if you are being PR-ed?
Are you so naive that you don't realise that you're being projected as something that you're not?And is it fair on the person being targeted with all the PR skills?
Life's not a job interview.And it shouldn't be treated like one too..calculating,weighing options,making perfect flawless impressions and earning all brownie points for,lets face it,something you really aren't.
Watching each other's backs is one thing..and *CRASH LANDING* a whole another thing.
Bottomline:If you need to be PR-ed (c'mon is someone still bluffing themselves out there? there's not an iota of a chance in the world that you're a full grown person and you don't know that you're being "made" to look good!except if you're a toddler whose parents are lying to dupe the school authorities into taking you in!)
Sooooo,..if you need to be PR-ed..does that not speak volumes about you?Don't say the answer aloud.Not because the world doesn't need to know but because you don't need to tell the world yourself.Everything,my dear friend,sooner or later,speaketh for itself.
As for me,i still carry my fine bone china like relationships with them both.. precious,handle with supreme care and invaluable in their own ways. The only difference between the two china is that...one is constantly on tenterhooks for the fear of breaking ... and the other.. well the other stands secure,with pride of being one of the finest china in the world..always reassuring that it can never break.
All that i'm saying is that,if you have the eye,sooner or later,you'll be able to tell the faux fur from the Russian Barguzin sable!! You'll just be able to tell.
In today's world,the line that the demarcates "good" and "made to look good" is so fine..That FINE has to have a new fine word to define itself.Well,if i'm still unclear as to the point i'm trying to make then this is what it is..when you see the most beautiful-exactly-what-you-needed-bang-on advertisement of a product,is that what you get when you buy that thing that you saw? Or is it not quite what you saw?Is the PR industry projecting it way better than the production industry or packaging industry or whatever industry which is actually making it?!?
Yes Ladies and Gentlemen....Welcome to the World of Faux Par Excellence !!
There's a story behind this story.
This tale runs in retrospective mode and the pieces fit in as realization dawns upon me.Up until a few months i was with two friends who started dating a few years back and became one of those stick-to-each-other 24*7 couple!It was the perfect picture and they were so crazy about each other that,EVEN "crazy" forgot its limits when it came to them.They finished each other's sentences,food,work..to (YOU NAME IT!)from waking up in the morning or taking an exam,it was confusing to the layman's eyes as to what was whose responsibility.The line of demarcation had become so fuzzy between the two individuals that for us,it was a matter of great feat that we were able to tell them apart!For them.."WE" had not only replaced "I"(like most normal couples) but the whole alphabet range when they were together.
So? What was the point of concern in this lovebirds' story? I.
(DISCLAIMER: And i speak only for myself here,not for all of "us" related to them.)
Well,it so happened that I was(at least in my head and very very sincerely from my side)pretty close to them both.As a result of which,when the glass shattered and their bitter-est break up happened,the likes of yours truly was squished on more than one occasions and so i was one of the people who struggled and juggled to strike a balance to maintain my relationship with both of them.THAT'S WHEN IT BECAME CRYSTAL CLEAR!
In the course of all the struggling and juggling,i realized how i never had a relationship with the "both" of them.It wasn't the both of them who remembered my birthday.It wasn't the both of them lending me a shoulder when i needed the most.It wasn't the both of them worried about my health.It wasn't the both of them who loved me the way i was made to believe...It wasn't the both of them Blah Blah and Blah.It wasn't the both of them EVER in anything.
It was in fact one of them,making the other one look good.
*CRASH LANDING*
It was always one of them handling the PR for the other at all times,making not only that person an angel but also making people like me,feel like utter fools on our happy-realization-day!
Suddenly your take on all the previous events changes..all your happy memories with your favorite people become blotchy flabbergasting revelations with someone who didn't even care an iota bit.
Blame it on the PR-par excellence?Or the PR Manager? Or your exceptionally blindfolded judgement?
Well.I'm definitely not one to answer THAT after being crowned the fool here.But what i did know in the end was that.. who was and who wasn't the one in bad light.Who had a good intention there and who didn't care genuinely became much more easy to fathom..
As for the storytelling.Yes,this is it.The story behind this story.
My thought bubbles from my retrospective realization.
What if you are being PR-ed?
Are you so naive that you don't realise that you're being projected as something that you're not?And is it fair on the person being targeted with all the PR skills?
Life's not a job interview.And it shouldn't be treated like one too..calculating,weighing options,making perfect flawless impressions and earning all brownie points for,lets face it,something you really aren't.
Watching each other's backs is one thing..and *CRASH LANDING* a whole another thing.
Bottomline:If you need to be PR-ed (c'mon is someone still bluffing themselves out there? there's not an iota of a chance in the world that you're a full grown person and you don't know that you're being "made" to look good!except if you're a toddler whose parents are lying to dupe the school authorities into taking you in!)
Sooooo,..if you need to be PR-ed..does that not speak volumes about you?Don't say the answer aloud.Not because the world doesn't need to know but because you don't need to tell the world yourself.Everything,my dear friend,sooner or later,speaketh for itself.
As for me,i still carry my fine bone china like relationships with them both.. precious,handle with supreme care and invaluable in their own ways. The only difference between the two china is that...one is constantly on tenterhooks for the fear of breaking ... and the other.. well the other stands secure,with pride of being one of the finest china in the world..always reassuring that it can never break.
All that i'm saying is that,if you have the eye,sooner or later,you'll be able to tell the faux fur from the Russian Barguzin sable!! You'll just be able to tell.
