Simply Edelman

When thinking about the growth of Chicago PR, we think Edelman. When we think of the PR giant that he was, we assume that he was a complex man with deep ideas on how to revolutionize the business communication field. I believe he was simple, straightforward, and ingenious in the way only certain people can be. We also tend to assume that great men start with incredibly intricate ideas on how to become as iconic as Daniel Edelman was and is.  But the reality is that his greatest “big idea” was simply: “Do good. Tell other people about it.” That P & R “stuff” that companies wanted after the recession was just that simple. And it is from this simple idea that Edelman became the voice of Chicago PR.

            Another striking quality of Dan Edelman was his enthusiasm for the endeavors he placed before himself. When he wrote a 60-page document that outlined how to effectively carry out a public relations program, he did it with verve. His simple idea for PR was something that would be different, and therefore hard to incorporate into a business world that had little room for new experiments. Yet Edelman persisted in trying to grow his own business. He was an entrepreneur at all times.

            Our PRAD class recently had the liberty of attending Taking Flight in Chicago: The Talent Imperative. The CEO of GolinHarris, Fred Cook, emphasized that we were to become entrepreneurs. He said that we all live in the same general area, we all go to a university in the area, we eat mostly the same things, and we’re generally very similar. He wanted us to be entrepreneurs of not only business, but foods, culture, the media, nature, movies, music, etc. Then he reiterated that failure is going to happen – he even mentioned how many times his own businesses have failed.  This made me immediately think of Edelman. He was successful in becoming exactly what Fred Cook wanted from new PR practitioners. He joined the force because he had a deep-rooted love for his country. He found, married, and had children with a woman who his family did not agree with. He started his own business during a time when he only had Toni to fall back on.

            What I’ve learned from Dan Edelman and Fred Cook is that in order to be successful in PR, I do not have to own my own business…for now, but I do need to be entrepreneurial. I have to have the spirit and vigor that Edelman did, along with his simplicity in all things complex.