Are you cool enough to work in PR?

 16th July 2014    PR Guru 

I was not one of the cool guys at school or at college, but I still got the girls. Well one at least (and then, I married her. This is definitely not cool).

Once I got to work, I thought all that “being cool” stuff wouldn’t matter anymore. But I’m wrong.

Everyone judges you in this business, and it helps if you look right, sound right and have the right gadgets.

So here’s my guide to being cool in PR:

Ditch the BlackBerry - It’s all iThis and iThat these days. I was in a cafe with my PC laptop the other day, it all felt a bit awkward.

Never wear a Van Heusen shirt - Too old school. Did you turn up in a full sleeved one in this heat with a tie? Don’t make me laugh!

Don’t sound too Doon Schoolish - You need to be down with the people these days.

Always carry a coffee in a Starbucks cup around with you - Never be seen walking the streets without a coffee, cool people mainline caffeine. And your cuppa has to be Starbucks not CCD.

Work in the right part of town – Near the Cyber city hub in Gurgaon, as for Noida forget it!

Talk about the right TV series - If it’s on DD, even if you are feeling nostalgic or plain crazy it won’t cut it. From Mad Men to Game of Thrones to True Blood, it’s got to be Star World or HBO Defined all the way.

Be fit - Cool clothes only look good on good bodies. Which is my excuse for not bothering to wear trendy stuff, I can make anything look shapeless.

Have the right bag - If you can’t afford designer, a leather bag from a recent CII-WEF roundtable is acceptable. How was the roundtable by the way? (This is a trick question, because as any fool knows, WEF is no longer with CII and CII seminars aren’t that cool anymore!).

Wear the right shoes - In the summer, this can be tricky for guys, as even the best polished Italian loafers can look stuffy. Converse can look immature and are only suitable for androgynous looking actors while sandals are always a hard look to pull off. As for crocs, forget it!