Last month marks my one year anniversary at Gravitate PR and what a journey it has been. A year ago, I never could have imagined that I would be working entirely from home amidst a global pandemic and learning to handle the effects it would have on my work, my life and the world. Needless to say, recent events have changed my view of what it means to work in PR and the responsibilities that I have to my colleagues, clients, and community. However, there is plenty to celebrate and look forward to: we have a new company office in SF (that I’ve missed for its easy access to boba), new exciting clients, an amazing team, and so much more. Things have changed dramatically in just one year and I have no doubt our situation will change again, hopefully for the better this time.
Now one year and ten bylines later, here are some things that I learned from my time at Gravitate:
The word “proactive” has been used more times in one year at this company than I have ever used in my entire life, but it’s the best word to describe the self-driven nature of the team and a lesson that has become ingrained in my head. Whether it’s staying on top of the news, coming up with new story ideas and pitches, being one step ahead of clients and media is an absolute necessity in PR.
Being fresh in the industry, I jumped at every opportunity to try different work assignments that I could get my hands on. Early on, I was disappointed that there were a few things that I couldn’t do because of the lack of experience, but as time went on, I was able to develop a stronger foundation and relationship with my team. I realized that credibility came from proving I was responsible and capable whether through meeting deadlines or doing research. Having that trust from co-workers that have many more years of experience than me, gave me the confidence that my work would benefit our clients.
With so much happening from COVID-19 and the BLM movement, important stories that matter and affect our communities take precedence over whatever possible ideas we can pitch. However, simply respecting the gravity of these events isn’t enough, but finding ways to address them with clients and discuss with colleagues is a vital step of not just corporate responsibility, but basic human decency. PR often has a reputation for being evil and self-serving at the worst times, but I’m glad that everyone I’ve worked with recognized the situation, cared about the problems and encouraged each other to share their thoughts. This leads nicely to the last point.
Despite being physically separated in these turbulent times, I have witnessed the team rise to meet each new challenge with an extraordinary display of resilience and empathy. There’s no doubt that we are all doing the best we can to get by in their lives and continue to deliver great work. It has stuck out to me just how much time is spent giving everyone the space and break needed to maintain good mental health. It’s the little acts of kindness that makes me more proud than ever to be part of the Gravitate team.
*Shoutout to Heather Sliwinski for being a awesome leader and mentor*