As civilizations in the world evolved so did many professions. We have doctors, engineers and lawyers, to name a few; and they are all acknowledged for the contribution they make to the society we live in. They are trusted and much respected professionals in their respective fields. In fact, we are living in a world where we have well-trained professionals for each field.

As a mass communicationist I used to think where my profession stood in the league of hallowed career options, and whether I enjoyed the same respect and responsibility as other professionals did. It took me almost twenty years to realize that being a communicationist is no less than being a doctor or an engineer. Let’s have pride in being what we are—“The Communicationists”. This chapter shall make you understand how a student of mass communication becomes “The Communicationist”.

Chapter

The Communicationist—A New Age Professional

I

If you are reading this chapter, I am sure, you are either a professional who has something to do with marketing and marketing communication or you are someone with a keen interest in the business of communication.

When students start their journey in the field of mass communication they are generally seen as people who could not get into other more popular or recognized careers. I remember when I got into the field, not many around me could relate to what I was doing and how my profession contributed to the society.

So, who are we—the students of mass communication, public relations’ and marketing professionals, media personnel, brand consultants and the like? What is our collective identity? The best word or the term that comes closest to defining us is ‘communicationists’. Our fraternity comes under the umbrella of communicationists. In fact, it will not be wrong to refer to communication as our religion. Since I’m in the business of managing communication—and it is my karma—I refer to communication as my dharma.

To be an effective communicationist, it is important, more than anything else, to relate to—and embrace—this identity and understand its import. A communicationist is indispensable to society, especially in today’s age of information explosion. Their job is not less important than, say, doctors, engineers, lawyers or bureaucrats.

However, there is something unique that sets us, communicationists, apart from other professionals. We are the people with the ability and power to define how the world perceives a situation and how it reacts to a situation. We have the capacity to build world opinions and destroy global images; create world icons and manage global images. But that cannot be achieved if our mind is not nurtured and trained to produce quality results.

A twenty-year-old question I continue to ask my colleagues even to this day is: As a communicationist what is the source of your data consumption? We must reflect on what gives our mind enough data to produce effective results. How many of us read newspapers regularly? The idea behind asking this question repeatedly is to reiterate that the foremost requirement to become a mass communicationist is to feed data to our brain. What comes next is the ability to use this data to present a story in multiple ways.

Most of us read newspapers to update ourselves but a communicationist must read newspapers or consume news to understand every piece of news from all possible angles. Communicationists are responsible for not only managing their own perspective but also those of others.

For instance, if I am hired by the Indian National Congress party today, then I will have to think like Priyanka Gandhiji. But, if the very next day, my contract with the Congress party ends and I am hired by the Bharatiya Janata Party, I will have to speak for Modiji. A communicationist’s skill lies in how well he/she manages both the situations. But to be able to do so, your mind must, first, know the difference between ‘phrasing’ and ‘rephrasing’—how a story can be told in different ways.

Welcome to the world of communication!

Our business is to play with words. These words could be a radio jingle, a newspaper advertisement, a press release, content for a website, etc. Usually these words are complimented with visuals. Understandably, even to produce a few words of substance you must have a conscious and sub-conscious repository of knowledge. So, to become a communicationist you must consume large quantities of data on a daily basis.

Unlike doctors and lawyers, mass communicationists may not have to read fat books or burn the midnight oil, but that doesn’t make their work light or easy. It took me decades to understand that the role played by us is arguably the most important in the society. If an individual falls sick it is a doctor’s job to treat him or her, but if a society falls sick we are the ones who can treat it. As we grow in our professional life our duty in the world we inhabit also grows.

Now, just imagine if the doctors who treat us are not well trained or qualified to do their job. Would we entrust them with our health? Similarly, untrained communicationists or those with half-baked ideas and factually incorrect information can be detrimental to the society. How many of you (students) will train your minds to treat the society will be decided now; not in the future. What I do or say today forms an opinion, forms a society. When we see the instability in the world around us, we must understand that our role in it is going to be challenging and crucial.

If we know what we say, we will achieve proper profit for the client and proper profit for the society. In this entire world, it is only you and I whose profession is to handle this. We cannot simply stand up and voice an opinion on any issue unless we have studied it thoroughly. We cannot be opinionated; our voice has to be backed by research and facts.

II

Once we realize the worth and responsibility of being a communicationist, we can fully and sincerely prepare ourselves for the job. This leads to another vital question: What preparation do I have to make to become a communicationist?

As clichéd as it sounds, read a lot of newspapers. There’s no substitute to knowledge gathering than going through newspapers daily. In this digital era, of course, browsing news websites takes precedence because unlike print media, electronic and digital media are updated on hourly basis. Give your mind enough data to produce the right results. You must develop skills to analyse and understand data. As a communicationist you should know how to research a subject, find its context in a given situation and present the data relevant to it.

You ought to look at a story from different angles. Even newspapers and websites cover the same incident or event differently. You should know what The Indian Express or The Times of India or even ScoopWhoop and InShorts have to say about an event. This is just an example, there are many more newspapers and websites and our job is to keep up with as many as possible.

When I wake up in the morning, I sit with my eight friends—the eight newspapers I have subscribed to. Like a doctor reads up on what’s new in oncology or pathology, a student of mass communication must consume data to upgrade her knowledge on daily and hourly basis. Communicationists do not have the option or leisure to wait for another day, even another hour. Things are changing, events are unfolding within hours and minutes in our era of communication. As a case study, I would like to refer to the Aryan Khan case. So, if I have signed Shah Rukh Khan today and his son gets arrested tomorrow, my whole strategy will have to be changed a day later. Something that Byju’s did.

Another case in point is that of Amitabh Bachchan having to issue a statement on his pan masala advertisement. Mr Bachchan had to pay for what is called ‘the rush of communication’. As a communicationist I consume a lot of content without judging it. I simply wait and see where it is going; what trend it is pointing at. Cultivate the habit of being an effective communicator. Whether you are facing an interviewer at the start of your career or talking to a client as a professional. There are four aspects of being a good communicator:

Confidence— Your confident level should be 100 per cent. There is no place for anxiety and cold feet in the business of communication

Preparation— Train your mind every day. Knowledge has two facets. First is instant knowledge which can be gathered by Googling up a subject or simply be displayed by presence of mind. Second type of knowledge is sub-conscious which is gathered over a period of time by developing a discipline of reading, researching, analysing and learning. Know your industry inside out.

Presentable personality— It may sound old fashioned but be presentable at all times. Wear good clothes, have a neat look and groom yourselves.

Body language— This aspect is often neglected by many communicationists. Your gestures and body language have as much effect on the other person as your words. Work on your own body language as well as learn to decode the other person’s body language.

III

Most of us do not realise that the content we create is a powerful tool to shape opinions. As students of mass communication I suggest you should watch web series such as The Messiah, Snowden and Leila, to name a few. Each tells you something about how opinions are shaped and moulded.

Understand the power of content. There are two perspectives to look at your job; two ways to approach your profession. First, that you see it as a Rs 25,000 or Rs 50,000 or Rs 1 lakh a month job and dream of taking your girlfriend out, getting married, buying a car, owning a house, so on and so forth. Second, that you see yourself contributing to an organisation as a mentally aware human being.

In the latter case, you will not consider yourself inferior to a doctor or lawyer. You will, in fact, be the flag bearer of managing opinions. As a communications professional you should hold on to your opinions strongly. We live in a democratic country where everyone is entitled to their opinion but that doesn’t mean we have to conform to popular trends or opinions; our ideas should be original and opinions must be based on research.

Students of mass communication mostly become journalists, copy writers or get into advertising agencies, client services or become visualisers and filmmakers. But before settling into any of these career fields, it is pertinent to decide the company you want to join. Don’t pick anything out of what the placement guys offer you. Have your goal set without anyone trying to sway your opinion or change your target.

IV

You must know where you want to see yourself in three years. You cannot, and should not, wait for three years to see where you end up. It’s akin to travelling without ticket or reservation in a bus or train where you somehow manage to complete the journey but have neither a comfortable seat nor peace of mind. It’s essential to have a roadmap and be clear about which company you want to join and which area you want to work in.

If you are preparing, or are already well prepared, you will be ever ready for opportunities that may come your way in surprising ways. There are immense opportunities out there and there is always a demand for good professionals.

If you have skills for two different careers and are indecisive as to what you should pick, I recommend that you do an internship in each discipline. As a student you have the liberty and time to do that. By working in both fields, you will ultimately know which one is the best for you. Try and have an internship of at least three to six months in both the disciplines and you’ll know what you want. Communicationists are often so obsessed with speaking out their mind and verbalising their ideas that they underplay the role of writing. If you can wield your pen as efficiently as your tongue, your originality and depth as a communicationist will take you places. Develop a habit to write.

I speak from my position and experience, I may even give you advice but ultimately you will have to choose your own path. Your experiences will create your story, no one else’s can. It’s always good to remember that each time we fall, we learn something new.

The world of communication is vast, ever changing, extremely demanding and sometimes overwhelming, but you can navigate it smoothly if you know your identity, do your preparation, realise the power of content and be clear and decisive.