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Stoic Philosophy for PR Professionals

When the obstacle is the way to better PR.

Jerry Silfwer
by Jerry Silfwer

Cover photo: @jerrysilfwer

3 min.

Could sto­ic philo­sophy for PR pro­fes­sion­als work?

A few hun­dred years BC, a Cypriot mer­chant lost everything in a shipwreck.

His name was Zeno, and accord­ing to the legend, he walked into a book­store, broke and almost beaten, and searched for answers by read­ing philo­sophy. Some years later, he went on to lay the found­a­tion of Stoicism. 

A sto­ic believes that we should take the Universe at face value without expectations. 

But Stoicism is also, in more ways than one, the oppos­ite of tra­di­tion­al pub­lic rela­tions and mar­ket­ing; we strive to influ­ence per­cep­tion and man­u­fac­ture con­sent by mak­ing people want more.

PR is often about big­ger, bet­ter, faster, and stronger.
More drama. More conflict.

What if Zeno was right — and we are wrong?

Table of Contents 

Growth by Enduring Hardships

The idea of a sto­ic approach to pub­lic rela­tions made me revis­it a book I read a few years ago, Ryan Holiday and his book The Obstacle is the Way: The Timeless Art of Turning Trials into Triumphs.

The Obstacle Is the Way by Ryan Holiday.
The Obstacle Is the Way by Ryan Holiday.

Drawing from sto­ic philo­sophy, Holiday argues that Stoicism isn’t just about endur­ing pain and adversity with per­sever­ance and resi­li­ence; it’s about allow­ing these obstacles to make you grow.

Then, a sto­ic PR pro­fes­sion­al would avoid reach­ing the masses with fire­works and plat­it­udes.

To suc­ceed with the Stoic philo­sophy for PR, we must trans­form obstacles into oppor­tun­it­ies. The dif­fi­culty of your path must be your best tool for con­quer­ing pub­lic opin­ion.

Could sto­ic philo­sophy work as a mod­us operandi for PR pro­fes­sion­als?

A Stoic Philosophy for PR

The Stoic PR Professional

I’m fas­cin­ated by Stoicism and I’m inspired by the idea of trans­lat­ing clas­sic­al Stoic vir­tues (wis­dom, cour­age, justice, tem­per­ance) and apply­ing them to pub­lic relations:

The Wisdom Pitch

“A Stoic is someone who trans­forms fear into prudence, pain into trans­form­a­tion, mis­takes into ini­ti­ation, and desires into under­tak­ing.”
— Nassim Nicholas Taleb

Tell stor­ies of how organ­isa­tions can be wise and over­come obstacles that have stopped oth­ers in their tracks.

Convey the PR mes­sage of how to apply wis­dom, know­ledge, and experience.

The Courage Pitch

“We can­not choose our cir­cum­stances, but we can always choose how we respond to them.”
— Epictetus

Tell stor­ies of brands that nev­er back down in the face of hard­ships that would lay waste to oth­er organisations.

Convey the PR mes­sage of how an organ­isa­tion can be right­eous even when storms are raging.

The Justice Pitch

“Concentrate every minute on doing what’s in front of you with pre­cise and genu­ine ser­i­ous­ness, ten­derly, will­ingly, with justice.”
— Marcus Aurelius

Tell stor­ies of how organ­isa­tions relent­lessly can strive for hon­esty and trans­par­ency — even when uncomfortable.

Convey the PR mes­sage of how all brands, without excep­tion, can rid them­selves of dis­hon­esty and incompetence.

The Temperance Pitch

“It’s not the man who has too little, but the man who craves more, who is poor.”
— Seneca

Tell stor­ies of organ­isa­tions that strive for high­er val­ues in a world where all oth­er organ­isa­tions suf­fer shortsightedness.

Convey the PR mes­sage of organ­isa­tions pre­pared to abstain from short-term gains to make the world a bet­ter place for all.

Learn more: Stoic Philosophy for PR Professionals

When the Obstacle is the Way

The Stoic philo­sophy for PR pro­fes­sion­als could be a prac­tic­al approach. I like the idea of a PR pro­fes­sion­al who sees oppor­tun­it­ies where oth­ers only see obstacles.

I also like the idea of a PR pro­fes­sion­al who’s not striv­ing for short-lived fire­works but who strives to build brands of sub­stance. I like the idea of a PR pro­fes­sion­al who drives aware­ness through doing dif­fi­cult things.

Please sup­port my blog by shar­ing it with oth­er PR- and com­mu­nic­a­tion pro­fes­sion­als. For ques­tions or PR sup­port, con­tact me via jerry@​spinfactory.​com.

PR Resource: The High Road Tonality

The High Road Tonality

An organ­isa­tion is the total sum of all its cowork­ers. Imagine tak­ing the most mature traits from each cowork­er and com­bin­ing them into one voice — the high road tonality.

  • Openness. A mature organ­isa­tion under­stands that every­one must be allowed to express their thoughts and opinions.
  • Fairness. A mature organ­isa­tion will see (and respect) both sides of a divis­ive argument.
  • Strength. A mature organ­isa­tion is con­fid­ent in its chosen strategies and acquired abil­it­ies, not because they’re per­fect, but because they are grounded.
  • Wisdom. A mature organ­isa­tion will take their time to explain com­plex top­ics without condescendence.
  • Humility. A mature organ­isa­tion under­stands that no one can have everything com­pletely figured out and that we all have learn­ing and grow­ing to do.

Read also: The High Road Tonality: Don’t Be Pushed Around

Jerry Silfwer
Jerry Silfwerhttps://doctorspin.net/
Jerry Silfwer, alias Doctor Spin, is an awarded senior adviser specialising in public relations and digital strategy. Currently CEO at KIX Index and Spin Factory. Before that, he worked at Kaufmann, Whispr Group, Springtime PR, and Spotlight PR. Based in Stockholm, Sweden.

The Cover Photo

Stoic Philosophy for PR - Autumn Grass

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