At Westfourth, we often have the opportunity to mentor great up-and-coming PR professionals. Their talent and enthusiasm for the field is a reminder to all of us about the importance of our work and the reasons why we got into this business in the first place. It’s great to see someone excel in a new role, take on new challenges and place such a high priority on learning new skills. In our office, our Client Support Specialist Lauren Wingfield is a rising star. Below, she offers her perspective as a professional new to the PR field, and shares some advice for her peers as well.

The number one rule to live by when starting out in the PR profession is to not settle. No matter how tired you are of networking and filling out job applications, giving up is not an option. You’ve paid for and received a degree in higher education. Therefore, you shouldn’t be working anything that isn’t in your field. Once you adopt this mindset, success is sure to follow.    

You must be confident in your work and always open to improving your skills. Don’t be afraid to ask for help, but also don’t be afraid to speak up when you have ideas. These are qualities that will stand out to others. One conversation could lead to great advice from your boss or even the next step in your career.

Patience is needed when working in this industry. You might not be doing everything you expected to do right away, but that’s okay. The time for you to show your talent will come. Until then, work on whatever is asked of you, and be a team player.

Lauren Wingfield

Writing projects and other work you do will receive edits, and nothing will ever be perfect the first time around. But don’t beat yourself up when a client or your boss has edits for the content you’ve created. Instead of getting frustrated, ask what you can do differently. It shows that you want to learn from your mistakes, and care about the overall satisfaction of the client.

Lastly, be passionate about this field and never stop creating. Passion will increase your drive to always work hard and produce great content. Always take the opportunity to build your portfolio. Freelancing is a great way to show that you are passionate about public relations, and exercise some personal creativity. Adopt this mindset, and you will be unstoppable.