Perceptions

I am sure that sometime in our lives many of us have experienced bullies. Perhaps it was in elementary school at recess when some big kid would go around and physically abuse smaller kids. Or maybe it's at the work place where some people with authority or power treat those below them with disrespect and contempt. Their behavior is designed to give others the impression they are tough and on top of the world when, in fact, as recent studies have suggested, they are in all likelihood more insecure and filled with self-doubt than those they push around. It's all about trying to appear as you want to be seen rather than as you really are. And then there are politicians who participate in photo-ops as a way of visually demonstrating their support of a particular issue. One of my favorites in the past decade is the politician who poses with members of the armed services to show his support while at the same time he is sending these men and women into battle with insufficient equipment and protection. The photo op with the troops was designed to cover up a far less flattering reality about that elected official.

To some extent, each day we all do what we can to have others perceive us in a certain way even if it is not totally accurate. At work, for example, I try my best to project an attitude of good cheer even on those days when the sun is not shining as brightly for me as I might like. Many public relations professionals, of course, have a reputation for shaping perceptions. Take that photo op with the troops that I mentioned earlier. That's something with a P.R. practitioner's finger prints all over it. Does this make the professional communicator who did that dishonest? What about the politician? What about the elementary school bully? Am I being dishonest at work on days when I pretend to be in a better mood than I really am?

Before slapping the label of "dishonest" on any one, I think it depends upon the circumstance and the degree to which one is behaving. For instance, the politician who tries to be something he or she is not is being dishonest. The person at the office who is hurting on the inside yet smiling on the outside is not. I recognize, however, that a fine line exists between the two. Professional communicators who organize events or issue communiques of some sort need to be sensitive to this. It is easy to get caught up in the wishes of those who hire you to craft slick and professional messages to various publics without checking carefully to make sure everything you are saying and communicating is accurate and not misleading. True public relations works only when it is honest. Further, while perception is important. It should not be allowed to mask what is real