I’m often asked about how I pivot from writing a newspaper column to authoring an annual report, or from penning a magazine feature story to developing a marketing brochure.

The real question is, how easy is it to write in the voice of a client? How does a writer switch perspective and tone from objective third person to direct address, and back again, as indicated by the client’s goals?

Asking the right questions
The answer? It’s not difficult at all to adapt your writing style. If you are curious and want to learn from other people, asking the right questions comes easily. The key to the most successful communications tactics begins with the writer asking questions that provoke thoughtful, detailed answers with the client’s goal in mind.

Put another way, the best writing begins at the end. If your client’s goal is to generate sales or event attendance, then you will ask questions about the performer, the performance and the venue to help spark interest in the performance. If the client wants to sell widgets, then your questions will center around the products’ usefulness and value.

Beginning with the end in mind keeps you laser-focused on the outcomes your client desires. When you’re tempted to go off on tangents – however interesting they may be – you rein yourself in and hone in once again on the goal.

Incorporating client goals
It isn’t enough to have a list of your client’s top goals and then to develop the proper communications strategies to meet those goals.

First you must get to know your clients. Even if, like me, you work remotely and rarely attend face-to-face meetings, conversing with clients regularly about their work and their lives provides the insight to tailor your writing voice.

In addition, understanding the possible sensitivities that surround your client’s events, products or services is critically important. Know the kind of language to avoid, the proper tone for client communications, and the ways the company handles troubling issues.

Engaging readers
A newspaper column in a specialized publication will speak to readers in much different ways than a glossy corporate brochure. In the same way, the words you choose will be shorter, more concise and more direct in a news story and more formal in a brochure.

The content can be the same even if the presentation looks different. As you write, just as important as knowing the hot buttons to push when generating attendees at a concert is your understanding about the motivations of potential investment partners and the way consumers make choices.

In conclusion
Finding your own voice as the basis for all your communications work is most important of all. Being true to your vision helps avoid burnout and allows you to continue to make progress as a writer. The discipline of writing requires practice and patience and focusing on using your voice to create various publications in different voices is one of the chief ways you will grow into the best writer you can be.

Coping with stress is a never-ending pursuit for many of us as our world becomes more complex and demands on our time are constantly increasing.

Still, mindfulness practices, yoga, and meditation are not the only effective ways to reduce stress from work or personal issues. Learning something new can be a great way to relieve tension while enjoying a positive, enriching activity.

Say you are particularly stressed-out during your company’s downsizing period. Instead of putting your head down, gritting your teeth, and hunkering down for the ride, why not see if you can add a new skill to your toolbox?
Such an activity not only helps relieve stress – it also can make you more attractive to potential employers and even more valuable in your current workplace.

LinkedIn, professional organizations like IABC and PRSA, Khan Academy, and Linda.com are places where you can find inexpensive or even free learning opportunities. UC Irvine, Cal State Fullerton, iTunes U and community colleges throughout our region offer short-term professional classes to brush up on your skills or learn new ones.
In my first job as a reporter, I became a de facto writing coach for other writers and soon found myself in a new job as a copy editor.

Later, when I was managing editor of a regional monthly boating magazine, I took a rigorous, 12-week Coast Guard Auxiliary class to learn more about safety, engines, rules of the road for sailors, and more. A nice increase in pay soon followed. I also took two years of sailing classes and even though I’ve forgotten most of what I learned, I do remember how cruising Newport Harbor was enriching, enlightening and just plain fun.

Harvard Business Review writers Chen Zhang, Christopher G. Myers, and David M. Mayer studied stress and burnout and found that the usual coping mechanisms like getting away for a vacation or merely hanging in there weren’t as effective in reducing anxiety as learning something new.

In, “To Cope with Stress, Try Learning Something New,” published in September, they explain they investigated learning as a stress buffer “because learning helps workers build valuable instrumental and psychological resources.”
“Instrumentally, learning brings us new information and knowledge that can be useful for solving near-term stressful problems; it also equips us with new skills and capabilities to address or even prevent future stressors,” they write.

“Psychologically, taking time to reflect on what we know and learn new things helps us develop feelings of competence and self-efficacy (a sense of being capable of achieving goals and doing more),” they say.

“Learning also helps connect us to an underlying purpose of growth and development. This way, we can see ourselves as constantly improving and developing, rather than being stuck with fixed capabilities. These psychological resources enable us to build resilience in the face of stressors.”

So, when you think you just can’t take another pointless meeting or fill out yet another timesheet, think about some ways you can add new skills to your professional repertoire or how you can sink your teeth into a long article in a professional journal. Your boss just might thank you for it.

Striving for happiness is a constant challenge. It becomes nearly impossible when we face big changes at home or work.

Unless we set boundaries, unrelieved anxiety can fester into life-threatening health issues – not to mention problems with our spouses and families.

We’re all stressed out
I neglected the danger signs when my father passed away, my workload increased, and the demands of my job permeated my life. Tension and worry gave way to a major depression. Ultimately, I missed several weeks of work.
When you’re sweating to meet goals and deadlines, long hours are expected, and personal life is diminished. Your focus becomes success at any cost, and work becomes your life. If enough time passes, you begin to think that this is the New Normal.

Make life better
Gwen Moran, writing in Inc. Magazine, acknowledges the conundrum. “Into each life, some annoyances, obstacles, and misfortune will fall,” Moran says. “And while some self-help gurus will tell you to simply ditch what’s making you unhappy or holding you back, sometimes, it’s not that easy.”

In her story, “6 Tricks for Surviving Work and Personal Adversity,” Moran quotes Linda Hoopes, author of “Prosilience: Building Your Resilience for a Turbulent World.”

“Everybody has those constraints and situations that we don’t want to be in,” says Hoopes, a licensed clinical social worker and resilience expert. “Sometimes, you’re stuck with them for the time being. But there are things that you can do to make many situations better and cultivate greater resilience, even as you look for long-term solutions or resolutions.”

Small rewards can help
If your situation is long-lasting, it helps to pay special attention to your own comfort and relief.

That doesn’t mean an expensive weekend trip to a fancy spa. Ongoing self-care that helps relieve stress, promotes deep sleep, and offers a respite from your unrelenting pressures is optimal.

Commonly suggested remedies like long, hot baths with scented bubbles, facials, massages, yoga, exercise, and acupuncture really work. Taking an hour to read for pleasure, or sitting on your patio for a few minutes listening to birdsong, playing with your dog, or calling your best friend are small indulgences with big rewards.

Make lists
Break down your responsibilities, list them, and give each a priority. This will not only help keep you organized – it also will force you to focus on the things that matter rather than the self-critical voice in your head.
Is change possible?

Change what you can about your situation, advises Hoopes. “Even within a bad situation, you can make small changes to improve it and turn it into motivation to make bigger changes,” she notes. “You can look for opportunities to learn new skills, even in a job you hate. If you’re managing caretaking responsibilities, you might be able to enlist help from others to get some time for yourself. Think creatively about your situation and how you might be able to make small changes to improve it.”

Track your progress
Moran says one important way to combat job fatigue is to reframe your situation. Instead of complaining about what you cannot change, try listing the ways you have benefitted the company, the professional honors you’ve earned, or the ways you have grown professionally. Seeing yourself more objectively helps when the boss bears down.

When I made the career switch from journalism to public relations, I was apprehensive about working for a public relations agency. I worried about reputation and integrity and how I would perform.

Mostly I worried about tracking 15-minute increments of billable time for every task and assignment. What if I didn’t fulfill client expectations in the budgeted time? What if I was too slow?


Time is Money
It turns out that tracking my time during my six years at a full-service PR agency taught me one of the most valuable workplace lessons: Time is money, just as Benjamin Franklin said.

Today, years later and now an independent consultant, I appreciate that lesson every day. When providing cost estimates to my clients I break down each task according to the time required and quote my price based on those estimates.

Tracking every 15-minute time increment may seem overwhelming or unnecessary, but trust me, it’s a discipline I rely upon every day and a detail my clients appreciate. They pay me to juggle multiple projects, accomplish complicated assignments quickly and accurately, and provide an accounting of where I spend my time.

Even Small Periods of Time are Valuable
Because time is money, even the 10 minutes you spend waiting in a client’s office offers valuable opportunities. I’ve become quite skilled at identifying small tasks that I can squeeze between longer, more complicated assignments.
If you have just a few moments, consider checking one of these things off your list.
1. Create your daily to-do list.
2. Prioritize your tasks.
3. Clean out your purse, desk drawer, or briefcase.
4. Organize emails into folders.
5. Clear the top of your desk.
6. Do 10 reps of an arm or shoulder exercise.
7. Do some deep breathing and a short meditative exercise.

If you have 15 minutes to kill, how about getting these chores done?
1. Think carefully about a work problem for which you need solutions.
2. Take a short walk around the office, or better yet, outside in the fresh air.
3. Call your doctor, chiropractor, or dentist to make that long-postponed appointment.
4. Schedule the gardener to trim trees and shrubbery.
5. Stop by the dry cleaners to pick up or drop off clothing.
6. Phone your mother.

If you have 20-30 minutes, try doing these things:
1. Use this time for creativity – think about new ways to approach your work.
2. Read one of the articles you’ve saved for when you have a few extra minutes.
3. Listen to an audiobook.
4. Eat a healthy snack.
5. Check out online management tools, like Asana or Basecamp.

Whether you have just five minutes between appointments or find yourself with a chunk of unscheduled time, you can be prepared to bang out some chores, errands, and other to-do items. Keep your calendar handy, use your smartphone to check off your progress, and always have a book or article with you to read. You won’t regret living with the adage ‘time is money’ in the forefront of your mind.

When you rely on LinkedIn, Indeed, or Monster for job leads, you recognize that competition is fierce for available communications positions.

Even if you aren’t looking for your next opportunity, it’s difficult to ignore the fact that other communications professionals are eager to move up the ladder, sniff around your workplace, and snatch your job away.

How can you retain your relevance when you’re already working to capacity? What bright new ideas can you generate to let the boss know you’re an engaged and valuable commodity? Where can you gain some experience outside your immediate job description?

The answer to all three of these questions is simple: By volunteering to assist a charity or nonprofit of your choice, you can learn new skills, brainstorm new ideas, and see the new ways other pros successfully communicate. While it doesn’t pay a salary, a volunteer position lets you become a leader with very little down side.

Professional Organizations Need You
In my experience, leading professional organizations is rewarding on several levels. Not only does it train you to work collaboratively with others, it also forces you out of your comfort zone and into a place where your ideas are given serious consideration.

Once you can lead the group, you can correlate directly the effectiveness and ingenuity of your suggestions – and consider the reasons you are or are not effective.

Colleagues grow to respect your dedication to the common cause. For me, that meant recognition of my adherence to the Public Relations Society of America professional code of ethics and earning an accreditation in public relations that few pros attain.

Serving as president of IABC Orange County has allowed me to meet communications professionals – graphic artists, writers, public affairs directors and corporate marketing heads – from throughout North America. Sharing ideas for common concerns has taught me that there are usually a few solutions to every thorny issue as long as you remain open to fresh insights.

Does volunteering take up valuable free time? Yes, and unless you’re willing to give up a few “Seinfeld” reruns you won’t yield the rewards of helping others who need you.

Is volunteer leadership demanding? I won’t lie. Sometimes being a volunteer leader is as politically rife as one’s ‘real’ job. But wow, what a way to learn – you aren’t gambling your job when you fail to adopt a budget or if your speaker doesn’t show up.

Are the rewards of volunteering immediate and measurable? Not always. But as I’ve accumulated leadership roles in several professional organizations, I’ve developed a strong, broad network comprised of professionals in many areas of expertise. I feel good about reaching out to seek advice or assistance.

It’s for a Good Cause
Other volunteer opportunities allow you to use your expertise to assist nonprofits dedicated to your favorite causes, such as saving our oceans or adopting stray cats. No matter the affiliation, the same leadership skills, donations of time and talents, and monetary donations are necessary to keep the association strong and operational.

My daughter and I spent a year working for School on Wheels, an organization dedicated to tutoring homeless children. It wasn’t always easy to get our young charges to focus on their homework or read a book, but we knew every time we stepped through the classroom door that these kids needed us.

Many volunteer jobs can include stuffing envelopes or making calls for donations – deadly dull routine work. But remember the reason you are there – to learn new skills, meet new people and feel good about helping out an organization struggling to make a difference.  If you go into the situation knowing your time, contacts, and experience will matter, volunteering will begin to pay off almost immediately.

Knowing that your hours of volunteer work assist others is strong motivation. It’s amazing to see your efforts pay off – whether that means teaching a homeless child or rescuing a hungry puppy – or even planning a professional event that offers new ways for professionals to do their jobs.

At the newspaper where I landed my first job, the best writers were plucked from the newsroom and promoted to editors.

And while some of them were inspiring and talented, there was little understanding that a good writer doesn’t always make the best leader.

What does being a leader mean? How can you gain leadership skills to prepare for future success?

Leadership – like every valuable skill – is something you develop over time. In a recent Inc. magazine column, best-selling author Jacob Morgan notes that the best leaders are not always at the top of the organization chart. “It relies on your ability to influence and engage other people,” he says.

Jacobs says aspiring leaders need to concentrate in four areas: Self-reflection, balance, true self-confidence, and genuine humility. I would add that service on a professional board, such as the Public Relations Society of America or the International Association of Business Communicators, is a good way to dip a toe into leadership waters.

Self-reflection
I agree with Jacobs that daily self-reflection can help set the foundation for strong leadership. Mindfulness meditation may be all the rage right now, but there’s a reason it’s so popular – taking stock of your behavior and discovering your true values are powerful tools for future success.

Balance
Good leaders listen to lots of opinions from different sources, but they always take responsibility and act quickly and decisively. If you weigh informed opinions and issue a verdict, you will strike a balance as a thoughtful leader.

True self-confidence
Jacobs says leaders who are truly self-confident know where they stand and improve themselves every day. If you can say ‘I don’t know’ or ‘I was wrong,’ that’s a sign you have true self-confidence.

Genuine humility
Even if you reach a great milestone in your career, never forget everyone who helped you reach your goals. Most of us started working in our chosen profession on the ground floor, and it was key mentors and colleagues who helped nurture our best qualities and chief capabilities.

Engagement with colleagues
This year I was flattered to be asked to serve as president of the Orange County chapter of IABC, the International Association of Business Communicators. One of the many reasons I joined the chapter is to hone my leadership skills while rubbing shoulders with leading local communicators.

I realized right away that the position requires a lot of good leaders – not just one – to be successful. I am fortunate to work with a board comprised of dedicated people who want success for our association and the communicators it serves.

Through IABC/OC I’ve learned strategic leadership skills while contributing to an impressive and far-reaching international organization. I’ve been able to share some of my own talents with colleagues in a variety of communications fields.

I try to remember what Jacobs notes in his Inc. story: You must constantly evaluate your progress and ensure you are staying on the humble, balanced path to be an effective leader.