You name it; I’ve done it when it comes to the communications profession. I’ve mixed over 17 years’ experience into my inkwell: media relations, issues management, internal communications, board and stakeholder relations. (Please see my profile on LinkedIn for my professional cv.)
My first love however, was broadcasting. The voice – the spoken word – that’s where the written word comes alive. That’s where persuasion happens.
I started out in radio at the tender age of 16 at the local country station. The afternoon DJ “discovered” my voice and my poise when I appeared on his show. They offered me a job, and I took it in a heartbeat – first as a swing shift DJ and soon after as a junior reporter. I also wrote advertising copy for a year.
I studied journalism at Carleton University, but after a few more radio and freelance writing jobs I soon found better hours and pay in corporate communications. Starting a family in my twenties hurried that transition.
I’ve worked for a political party, two Internet service providers, a small town newspaper, a charitable organization, and I even had a turn at a temporary employment agency (one of the best jobs I ever had). As you can tell, I thrive on diversity.
I rediscovered my passion for the spoken word as a Public Affairs Officer for the Government of British Columbia. I spent four years in various government ministries writing news releases, background materials, media plans and – lo and behold – lots and lots of speeches.
I thrived on every set of speaking notes I wrote. Once, when my boss went away on a trip to Asia, I wrote 17 speeches in about three weeks: everything from two-minute greetings for a fancy dinner to keynote addresses to high-powered business groups – all taking into account the translator.
I’ve written for audiences as small as a village Chamber of Commerce and as big as the Vancouver Board of Trade. I’ve written on topics as mundane as quick introductions for a featured speaker, and as important as a keynote address about international trade relations. I’ve written about controversial subjects like government funding for the arts, and I’ve also tried to make sewer and water infrastructure projects sound fascinating.
(I think I succeeded on that last one. You’d be surprised how interested people get about their water system when they’ve had to boil it for a few years.)
I can make your story breathe through the spoken word. Contact me. We’ll talk.
