Disclosure: This is not sponsored by PRSA, nor was it encouraged or suggested. This is completely from my heart and truly how I feel.

I joined PRSA about a year and a half ago. It wasn’t an easy decision for me and it took a long time for me to finally decide to go forth. I was active in PRSSA during my time at Drake University. While it was an enjoyable time and I’d highly recommend any PR student to join their school chapter, it wasn’t anything that blew me away. But a great experience, nonetheless. So after graduation, I was thinking about joining the local PRSA chapter where I was living and decided to check things out. Again, I walked away disappointed. I never joined.

* I’m sure the chapter is great, it simply wasn’t a great fit for me.

When I moved back to Minnesota in 2007, I had no intention of joining PRSA. After all, up until now I had gotten along just fine without it. There came a time, however, when I realized that I needed to be connecting with other professionals in my industry, and I needed to be networking. While I was creating these relationships and sharing my views online, I needed to take the same approach offline. So I joined PRSA and subsequently, Minnesota PRSA.

The first thing I did when I joined was sign up for Minnesota PRSA’s “Mentor” program. I was matched with Brant Skogrand, who’s turned out to be a very valuable connection. During our first meeting, Brant encouraged me to get back into blogging (I blogged back in ’05, but ran out of steam). He also encouraged me to join a committee and connected me with the communications committee. It was this experience on the communications committee that the light really hit me; and yes, I began to drink the kool-aid.

Through my involvement with the communications committee, I was fortunate to meet Arik Hanson (who I interviewed for a article for Quarterly). He asked if I was on Twitter. I was, but I hadn’t really used it. So I began to follow Arik, saw his interaction and realized the value and importance of Twitter. From that point on, the relationships and connections continued to grow. My passion and excitement for the Minnesota chapter evolved into what it is today.

So what’s the point of this rambling? I’m very passionate about my profession. Outside of owning a professional basketball team, I couldn’t imagine doing anything different. As a PR pro, I feel it’s my duty to stand up and be an advocate for my profession. While there is still room for improvement within PRSA, I’m proud to say I belong to the organization. The connections I’ve made and the knowledge I’ve gained is invaluable. My experience with Minnesota PRSA has truly been one of the best professional investments I’ve made.

Am I biased? Absolutely. If you’re a PR pro, join PRSA. If you’re a PR pro in Minnesota, why aren’t you a member of Minnesota PRSA? Honestly, it’s an absolutely fabulous chapter. As I mentioned above, I’d tell you if it wasn’t a beneficial experience.

So there it is. I’m a proud member of Minnesota PRSA. I’m drinking the kool-aid. I’m proud of my chapter’s status, I’m proud of the status of my industry. I know there’s room for improvement and I’m going to do everything I can to make sure both of these continue to provide value.

We stress the importance of emerging ourselves with the latest trends and we spend hours networking online. While both of those have provided great value to me, it’s the offline connections and work that I truly value. We’re all different. Some get value from professional organizations, some don’t. What’s important is finding what works for you and continually trying to better yourself and advance your profession. That’s what I’m doing. That’s what Minnesota PRSA is helping me do.