PR work life is hard enough. How then do you find time for not one, but two passions outside work? CommsCredible's Aman Dhall believes the answer is not in bucketing work-life balance but in accepting that both will take priority at different times.
At the latest Coffee with PRmoment India, I head out to meet the founder of PR firm CommsCredible at the wonderful 'Fig at Museo', a well-known oasis for culture vultures in fast-paced Gurgaon. I am running late, so when I finally arrive, the iconic pink ambassador car mascot for the Camera Museo which houses the cafe, is an immediate signal to slow down.
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After a round of introductions, I join Aman, owner of the amateur T20 cricket league team, Gurgaon Incredibles with his fellow team member Dr Ankit Verma (MCH Oncosurgery, M.S Surgery, Cancer Surgeon) at Dhanwantri Superspecialty Hospital and their coach Mahesh at the outdoor sitting for the cafe. A cool spray of water from misting fans keeps the area fresh despite the hot day.
The evolution to CommsCredible: From sportsperson, corporate communications professional to PR entrepreneur
Aman, Mahesh and I order a cappuccino, while Ankit goes for a healthy blueberry smoothie. Pulling out my Shure mic, I ask Aman about the transition to starting his PR firm. A former journalist with the Economic Times, Aman switched to PR by starting the corporate communications team at insurance aggregator Policybazaar. And in the middle of Covid year, in October 2020, Aman Dhall launched his PR firm.
Says Aman, "I think with any company, when you start, there can be two things that can happen. One is you can struggle in the first year. Or you can rise very fast. In our case, the latter happens, we grew quite fast in the beginning. In 2023, my focus was on processes. If you want to continue to rise, processes matter a lot for scale-up. "
As we chat, a slow-baked chocolate cake arrives, as does the bread with cherry tomatoes and avocado guacamole.
Carrying on the conversation, Aman talks about hiring differentiated talent as their client profile evolves. Aman shares that his firm will be doing a lot of hiring of young blood this year as they now have startup clients and international clients from the US and UK.
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Aman is also not looking too much at qualifications while hiring but more about their abilities. He narrates how he has hired a person to write who has not graduated yet, based on his writing skills.
Making time for fitness
The conversation now moves to fitness and the ever-present challenge of making time for it. Sharing his tips for busy PR professionals, the Gurgaon Incredibles coach, Mahesh says just making small changes in diet and exercise can make a positive impact. Just focusing on daily targets of 10,000 steps and avoiding white sugar can make a big difference.
Sharing his mantra Mahesh says, "Make a difference of 1% to get a 100% result." Aman chimes in saying he manages to clock 7000 steps just by walking while on work calls. The old 'Idea Telecom' ad with Bollywood's Abhishek Bachchan comes to mind with the iconic tagline, " Walk when you talk."
After Mahesh's comments, we all stare guiltily at the slow-baked chocolate cake!
Dr Ankit Verma, who plays in the Gurgaon Incredibles team with Aman, ( and the only one among us who ordered a healthy drink!) shares how he chose to slow down his hectic life as an oncologist surgeon in Delhi and moved to his hometown Moradabad, in Uttar Pradesh, to work at the Dhanwantri Superspecialty Hospital. Ankit also keeps fit by playing cricket and table tennis.
A PR entrepreneur playing table tennis for India in the ITTF World Masters Championships
As we conclude the interaction, Aman shares that he has been selected to play table tennis for India at the ITTF World Masters Championships (over 40 category) in Rome in July this year. He will soon be seeking sponsors and we will track his journey onwards.
Paying the bill, we move out to take pictures with the iconic pink ambassador parked outside the museum. Aman whips out his insta camera to take a pic and we part with a hard copy picture to mark the meeting!
The drinks and food were paid for by PRmoment India. If you would like to be featured in Coffee with PRmoment India drop us a message on X @PRmomentIndia or Insta PRmoment_India
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