During your time in the PR industry, have you faced gender-based discrimination of any sort? Is the PR world still a boys’ club?
“Yes, and plenty of it. Once I was the only female candidate among a group of three alpha males, and that was when I really learned about office politicking, it’s very tough. If you look at a multinational company in Asia Pacific, it’s mostly run by Western men in their 40s-50s. Seeing a local woman at the top is very rare.
If we continue to talk about how we are different, that will only exacerbate the issue. In my opinion, don’t say too much. I personally believe that if you focus and work hard, the money and achievements will follow. That’s why I very rarely talk about gender issues because the more we talk about it, the bigger a problem it is. I think in Indonesia, the age gap is a bigger issue than gender.”
Hanzky told us that when you helped her out with the ClozetteDaily launch, she would regularly receive emails from you at 3 and 4 in the morning. So are you a night owl or an early riser?
“Haha! Well, I’m all about routine. I’m used to going to bed at 9, so I get up very early to check my emails, enjoy a cup of coffee, and read the news. Even when I’m relaxing, I have to focus on just relaxing and not thinking about work. The same goes for the opposite: when I’m at work, I have to prioritize the client.
Something I used to do to work on my focus was go horseback riding. In horseback riding, if you don’t focus on what you’re doing, you will fall. When you go swimming, your mind still has room to wander, but not so with horseback riding.”
What do you do when you’re not handling crisis communications?
“I love cooking! I prepare my son’s packed lunches for school, and even when I do that, it’s an opportunity to train myself on how to focus and be in the moment. Ff you don’t focus on what you’re doing, you may cut your hand or botch the ingredients and taste. To me, cooking is very therapeutic because it gives me time on my own, but it also gives me the opportunity to focus on one thing.”
And what’s the advice you’d give young women who are struggling
“Stop comparing yourself with others. Just focus on what you need to do and do it well, and the recognition will come to you.”
We had a great time talking to Mayang Schreiber, learning a lot from someone who has garnered the respect from the people around her by hunkering down and keeping the blinders on. The best takeaway from this interview is how you can turn any activity into a lesson in learning how to focus: it’s hard to keep our minds zoned in on one thing, especially in an era where we have so many distractions at the palm of our hand. Train yourself into a routine that keeps you disciplined and do it as soon as possible, because the sooner you start, the sooner it will feel like a habit and not a forced routine.
This is obviously good advice not just for anyone interested in working in the PR industry, but to all Millennials taking their first steps in the working world. You can’t get to the top without a little bit of elbow grease, so don’t be afraid of getting down and learning how to focus to reach the goals you’ve set for yourself.
