Breakout 2B: Meeting the Challenge: Employee to Employer!

By Armando Diaz, Quotes treasurer and Denise Galang, Quotes director of special events

Every day many people wake up to the same routine working a 9-to-5 job while they secretly wish they had the courage to plunge into their dreams of owning and running their own business. The session we just attended addressed the questionable risks involved in taking this big leap while also calming the nerves of those professionals ready to take their career to the next level and into their own hands.

Joe Curley, APR, CPRC, senior corporate communications council, Universal Parks and Resorts International and Jackie Kelvington, president of Kelvington consulting group, gave an insider's point of view on opening your dream public relations business. They mentioned the many reasons why current public relations practitioners decide to leave the comfort of their offices for the freedom of a self-owned business. For Kelvington, spending more quality time with her family and friends had the largest impact on becoming a self-employed public relations practitioner. Kelvington mentioned a her top three reasons for opening a self-operating public relations consulting group:

• You set your own work schedule/hours


• The possibility for more money


• You chose your own clients

However, Curley also mentioned the downsides one may face when taking this risk. Some of the more important risks current public relations entrepreneurs must keep in mind are:

• You lose the daily “office” environment


• Paying for your own health care/memberships


• You may have to rely on sales in order to meet and work new clients


• A large individual workload may hamper your overall success and income

This panel discussion filled the voids of curiosity for the many professionals who are ready to invest in a challenge as well as those whose never considered of becoming their own boss. Whichever category you belong in, the session was definitely beneficial to all public relations professionals. As students, we learned about both being in a company and being the company -- good knowledge to have for the future!