The rarest of all things in American life is charm. We spend billions every year manufacturing fake charm that goes under the heading of public relations. Without it, America would be grim indeed.

Because I naturally think like a public relations practitioner, everything I see inspires me. When a new commercial or campaign is unveiled, I naturally ogle and judge it based on how creative I think it is. 

Like the nerd I am, I love reading articles about grassroots campaigns and causes that use innovative techniques or fail epically. From this, I can both take away ideas that inspire me or teach me practices that I should never repeat. 

This week, I stumbled upon (not literally this time) an article about the inventor of Spanx. Yes, Spanx. The wonderful containing method for women of all shapes and sizes. This invention has revolutionized the way we get dressed. Without awkward lines and cellulite, we're free to try new styles.

Would you believe the inventor became a billionaire without ever advertising her product? 

How Spanx Became a Billion-Dollar Business without Advertising

If you doubted me, read that article. 

Simply by word of mouth and contacting Oprah, Spanx grew into one of the greatest current companies. Sara Blakely, inventor and owner, used completely nontraditional techniques and became a huge success. 

This story inspires me for obvious reasons. It's generally taught that new ideas take time to catch on, but Blakely proves that innovation pays off and hard work can get you places. 

This picture isn't necessarily public relations specific, but the sentiment is true. Any PR major at an institution with a respectable program will tell you how hard the program is. We don't just sit around and hope to be hired by a great company, we work our asses off to achieve what we want. I hate the assumption that comm majors don't work. This inspires me in a weird way because I operate under that knowledge that yes, life will happen the way it's supposed to, but you can't just sit around and wait for it to happen. 

I like this photo mainly because it simplifies the different between advertising, marketing and public relations. Honestly, the relation to my creativity comes from my enjoyment of the image. It makes me laugh and appreciate my profession, which makes me want to continue excelling. 

Stories like Sara Blakely tell me that if I work as hard as I can, I will most likely achieve great things. I say most likely because sometimes life is strange. Trust me, I know what I'm talking about.