Written by Nathalia Tavares
Two days ago I was filling out an application for a club I wanted to be in, and I stumbled into an interesting question: “Tell us about a time you hacked into a (non-computer) system to your advantage.” I had no idea what to write. Until I realized, I had been hacking systems for almost all my life.
We often think that taking advantage of loopholes just doesn’t “feel right”. In fact, it feels like we are breaking a rule of some sort. However, hacking systems for our benefit in ethical ways not only often leads to our success, but it can also help the organization or group you’re in to move forward. Actually, it is almost expected of a leader.
I have found that using my language skills has been really helpful in reaching my goals. I have lived, studied, and worked in four countries, so it has been absolutely necessary to learn languages along the way. I have found these skills to be useful in breaking systems even in college. When I got to USC as a freshman, for example, I really wanted to be part of a student organization that performed musical acts in hospitals and children’s homes. Getting in the club was easy; being one of the main acts, however, was not. I knew that many of the members (and basically all the executive board) spoke some Chinese dialect. In fact, when I walked by their table at the Involvement Fair, they were answering questions only in Chinese! This was my chance: I took a deep breath, walked over to their table, and started asking questions in (broken, but confident) Mandarin. The executive board was surprised and they laughed at my Mandarin, but they found me very likeable. When showcase day arrived, I spoke a little bit to the executive board in Chinese, then played guitar and sang a song in Mandarin. The executive board loved it: a Latin American girl playing a Chinese song! I was just a freshman, but got selected to be one of the main acts.
Did I break any rules? Not that I know of! All I did was use my knowledge of the organization’s culture and used my own skills to my advantage.
Using loopholes in ways that benefit you may also lead to good results for the group you are trying to influence. Last year, I really wanted to play a big part in TriSight Communications, and not as an account manager. I heard that our executive board had been comprised of only PR graduate students for years, even though there was no set rule for it. I am an undergrad, and a Communication major. How could I possibly get in? And then I thought: this was my chance to bring something different to the table! I worked really hard throughout 2014 to make sure people knew I could deliver. Being TriSight’s Member of the Month was a good leverage as well. Finally, the interview came, and I was asked how I, as an undergraduate student, could play a part in an executive board with only graduate students. I responded that, as an undergrad, I knew what our undergraduate members wanted to get out of the organization, and that I could serve as an encouragement to those who wanted to play a bigger part in TriSight. I added that I would know how to approach undergrads in Involvement Fairs and other events where I would have to sell TriSight in a way that would make them feel more comfortable and less intimidated.
Again, no rules broken, and no ethical issues. From this experience, I got to use my status as an undergrad to my advantage, and I hope that, this year, I bring in more undergraduate members eager to work with us and climb up the TriSight ranks.
Sometimes, especially in PR, you will be expected to be naughty. You will have to understand what you’re selling, know your audience, and find your skills. Then, you can use the specific skills you have and tailor them to your audience, so you can pitch successfully. Your audiences like stories? Create one and tell them. Your consumers like statistics? Give them all the numbers. All you have to do is use their interests to your advantage in an ethical way. If the front door is locked, there will always be a back door open. All you have to do is find it.
After looking hard enough at the application question, I knew I could write away.