A
female
age
41-50,
anonymous
writes:Hi all, I need some help, I am suffering from terrible anxiety and I don't know where to start. To give you some background. I am 35 living in London and had a job I love for 4 years as head of a team at PR agency, I had crap 2015, my dad died suddenly and I was very close to him and then in January I was called into a disciplinary at work for being poor at my job basically was awful and was forced to leave, it was hard as my boss was horrible, the owner of company and I loved my job but thought she was the issue. Anyway, upshot is I am a new place, same remit and I am doing the same thing and running into trouble. So it's been a month into the job and the clients are not liking me, I try and just can't get there, there is one very very tricky client and we almost lost the client before I came last month he's a celebrity and been hard, I had a meeting with him and managed to turn it around and they were so happy my boss and new place, only now in the last 2 weeks it's all got to crap! it's my fault, I sent over things I shouldn't that as a professional who is head should have been more strategic about and on reflection I know this. I screwed up last week and now this week again, today I have sent over something and so bad the celeb client called to say they are disappointed, It is such a shame as after the meeting 2 weeks ago they said I seem fantastic to my boss. My boss was so happy as nearly lost them and now I have mucked up.They are not replying to my emails and have called me into a meeting on Wednesday face to face and I am so scared. Maybe the issue IS ME. Maybe I am bad at my job after all this is going on and it's my fault. I just don't know what to do, quit, give up. Try even though it is obvious I can't do it. Thing is I see now where I went wrong and wish can go back a few weeks as the client loved me and I turned it around only to crash it massively, any advice please xxx
View related questions:
at work, my boss Reply to this Question
Share |
Fancy yourself as an agony aunt? Add your answer to this question! A
reader, anonymous, writes (27 September 2016): Your confidence is shaken and you're far too distracted from minding the details. You have to get out of your head, and focus. You are afraid of screwing up, but causing yourself to screw-up due to anxiety. You are over-thinking and overreacting; because you're so afraid of being fired.
The celebrity client may have already been hanging by a thread; and you couldn't have chosen a worse time to be off your game, than with a fickle client. You may not be the full reason for the debacle that occurred; but you can't see that if you're crazy with anxiety over it. Look into the details and form a strategy.
Pull it together, sister. You can't make it a practice of falling completely apart when you hit a crisis, or experience a personal tragedy. You have to be able to stand-up under pressure, or change professions.
Public Relations is the business of making a client or a business look good. To clean up a mess that may cause loss of business, or public embarrassment. You can't screw around with the livelihoods of clients, or you could be a legal-liability to your employer. Even to yourself. This is not meant to add to your anxiety; but it is a warning that if you're losing it, get some help.
I think you need to see your medical doctor about your anxiety; to determine if you're just suffering a temporary nervous disorder due to stress. Being high-strung can definitely be a asset in the PR business; if you stay on your toes. If you fall apart and start doubting your own abilities, it's time for a career-change.
Don't quit. Resolve yourself to stay focused. Repeat affirmations that you've got this, and you can indeed handle whatever comes your way. It's all in your head right now; and you've been hanging out up there, instead of keeping your mind focused on your work.
I believe you can pull it together. Let the past help you to regain your balance and keep notes to make sure you always have references to remind you what you're doing. You can't be mulling over your personal problems and still pay attention to detail or focus on what you're doing. Learn to put things away when you're on the clock; or you will continuously be going from one job to the next.
Okay, the mistakes may have been your fault. Stop shattering into itty-bitty pieces, and instead form a plan on how to cover your ass and correct your mistakes. Forgive yourself, and don't allow emotion to overrule your common-sense and composure. It's strictly business, and your emotions have to be under control.
A
female
reader, anonymous, writes (26 September 2016): Everybody screws up at their job at some point. In some cases people notice and other times it slips through the net. Always remember it's just a job and if it goes wrong then you can always go and get another one, even if it is doing something else.
...............................
A
female
reader, fishdish +, writes (26 September 2016):
 Look, as important as this client is, he's obviously very high maintenance/temperamental. Whatever's been going on with him has been going on long before you got there. If your actions cause you to lose the client, it sounds like that could have been inevitable, as he seems to have been one foot out the door for a while. IF you lose the position because of this, a) I think that's a little harsh, you're still new to the position, but b) take it as a lesson learned. You said this is the second time this has happened in recent times. It sounds like in both of these jobs, you have done something without completely thinking through the consequences, either because you were careless or distracted or just didn't put enough thought into it. I could be wrong but that's what I'm gathering. When you're in those states, you might want to get a second opinion on what you're communicating. Example, when something bad happens at my boyfriend's office and he's angry over something, he writes an email, but then has a co-worker vet it so that he doesn't come across too harsh or burn bridges. I can't tell if you're saying your boss won't respond to you or the celebrity won't..if you can, try to talk to the boss about what happened, how it was an oversight or thoughtless error, whatever the case, see if you can gauge where you are with them. They may be of the position that it is this guy's loss, he's been a loose cannon for a while, and yes it's lost money and reputation possibly, but he may not be worth the trouble. Go in with a gameplan on how this is not going to happen again. Hope that helps. In the meantime, don't spiral out of control about it. It's a mistake, we all make them. Do your best to forgive yourself.
...............................
A
male
reader, Denizen  +, writes (26 September 2016):
 Don't quit. You're still in the game. It's not over until you get fired. If your boss is any good, he will understand people have runs of fortune and also dry spells. That's all that is happening. Trust your mojo. It's like swimming. If you let go the water will support you.
You need to relax and do some right brain stuff out of hours. Your left brain is your worst critic and it is killing your pitch.
...............................
|
