How to deal with PR’s sweatiest moments

After chatting with colleagues, I came up with some of the most sweat-worthy PR moments folks have dealt with, along with tips for overcoming them:

Late, late, late. While pitching a prospective client in suburban Atlanta, we got lost on the way to the office and were about a half-hour late to meet with C-level execs. The busy prospects glared at us through the meeting and cut us off early to show their displeasure. (Needless to say, we didn’t win the business.) If you’re unfamiliar with an area, consider doing a “dry-run,” including driving to the prospect’s office. Even the best GPS isn’t infallible.

Conference line conundrum. For a top-tier reporter interview with one of my clients, I circulated our conference line details without double-checking with the rest of my team to confirm the line’s availability. Six other team members ended up dialing in accidentally for a totally unrelated call, some even scolding me for not double-checking. Always check to make sure the conference line is free.