Failure is a part of growing up, and it’s normal to do so. Like many things in our society, it has become such a taboo to the point where people won’t even attempt a task in fear of not being good at it on the first try. The thing about failure is that we need it to help us grow. The thought of failing at something usually stops people in their tracks from pursuing budding interests, such as getting that plant for fear of killing it, or simply trying something new.
    With social media reaching new heights everyday, it’s hard for people to compartmentalize what goes into being successful. I mean, sure, we hear it’s hard but we don’t actually see how hard it is. We’ve been conditioned to believe failure shouldn’t even be in our vocabulary. With videos, stories and pictures highlighting public figures' top points in their lives, it's hard to take things with a grain of salt. What I wish I heard more is we aren’t going to achieve greatness straight out of college just because we have a degree, it’s what one does with that degree that makes them successful. 
  The reality many people face in order to achieve the level of success we want is through failure. Even if we do ‘fail’, we are not failures if we keep trying. The only way someone can truly fail at life is by not taking risks at all, or by dwelling in failure to the point of not taking anymore risks. We will never know how something will turn out, good or bad, if we never make that jump. It’s hard for most people, since our society has become so visual, to realize greatness takes time and the learning curves that are thrown at us can make us into the person we want to become.
   Although failing might be embarrassing, possibly making someone want to move to a different state under a different name and open up a candle shop; that’s the price every successful person has had to pay a few times. 
A few great examples I found of successful people having failed included: 

• Walt Disney going bankrupt, with his company ‘Laugh-O-Gram’, before he created Mickey Mouse and his Disney empire. 
  
• Oprah Winfrey being fired from her first television job as an anchor in Baltimore before her infamous talk show. 
  
• Vera Wang failed at making it onto the U.S. Olympic figure skating team, and she didn’t design her first dress until she was 40. 
  

  The list goes on and on. The point is, through their failures they found success elsewhere. They were brave enough, and confident in themselves, to take that leap. Like one of my favorite characters from a TV show once said,“Dude, sucking at sumthin’ is the first step towards being sorta good at something.” - Jake the Dog.
-Erin Warren

On October 15th, 2020, PRSSA got to chat with Stu Opperman, the leader of Impact Players Strategic Communications. Stu shared advice and his career history with the chapter, giving insight to the broad world of his experience in communications and public relations.

The beginning of Stu’s story caught the attention of many PRSSA members, as he detailed his experience in the world of sports communication. Early in his career, Stu had the opportunity to work as an operations manager for the basketball team the Miami Heat. He expressed that working in sports was a very exciting yet very demanding occupation. It was his dream, similarly to some members in the chapter, to work in such a highly-competitive field.

While Stu acknowledged the difficulty of breaking into a career in the world of sports, he did offer some hope to people who aspire to work in sports PR. Stu said publicist jobs are continuing to open up for athletes, as some players have developed strong interests in speaking on social and political matters. It was also noted that with the ever-evolving world of social media, interested young professionals may want to look into social media jobs within the sports world. In the end, Stu commented that a career in sports communication is not particularly sufficient to support a family on account of fickle, late scheduling and travel. However, if one is ready for the commitment, then it is an excellent and exciting career opportunity to have.

After deciding his time in the sports world was at an end, Stu began a career at an advertising agency. A decade of work at the advertising agency passed before Stu made the move to begin his own agency, Impact Players Strategic Communications. This was a major career move which resulted in a very satisfying change in Stu’s life. Representing various healthcare providers and the Make-A-Wish Foundation of South Florida, Impact Players is an agency that is making strides.

Stu left some final words of advice with PRSSA which truly resonated with its members. He emphasized the importance of writing as a skill; he said, “If you can write, there is always a market for that.” Stu stressed even frequent writers should keep writing because one can only improve and it’s important to keep improving. He also hinted at the importance of telling a story in one’s resume, which is an excellent way to make one’s resume stand out.

Stu brought to light the importance of PRSSA and PRSA. As a member of PRSA himself, Stu testified that the organization has been very helpful in establishing connections and developing important career skills.
As Stu said in the beginning, sports is a competitive career field but there are also several other branches of PR and communications are equally as competitive, if not more-so.
​
If one has eyes on a career in a competitive field, then one must put the work in to make it happen. Keep dreaming, and keep working hard for that dream! It is the dream that encourages the drive.

-Elysse  Fresquez

On October 1st, 2020, PRSSA had the opportunity to catch up with CSUS Public Relations alumni via Zoom. Former PRSSA members Farah Musallam, Adam Martinez, and Zebastian Chihuaque-Martinez shared valuable advice with members on how to prepare for a career before graduation. 

The guest panel highlighted the importance of participating in internships while in school. Not only does an internship allow students to gain experience, but it also gives them the chance to discover which aspects of their field they enjoy most. For this reason, our panelists highly suggested that students intern in different industries. It was noted that students we must take risks in order to find the career niche for them! And what better time to discover one’s  niche than now? Adam shared with us that now is the prime time for finding internships.

Now that everything has shifted online due to the pandemic, there is a stronger online presence for all industries. Farah recommended researching local companies on LinkedIn and set up information interviews with companies which capture one’s interest. To stand  out further, all of the    panelists agreed that reaching out to a potential employer is a great way to establish a connection. Zebastian confirmed that this technique works! That employer is just a phone call or an e-mail away. Even if they aren’t hiring now, there is always a chance they could call in the future about  another position.

The  panelists, also, shared some important software which they used either during internships or their current jobs. These included:

• Adobe Lightroom
• Adobe Photoshop
• Adobe Premier
• Canva
• FinalCut Pro (Mac only)
• Enlight
• Cision
• Muckrack

(Adobe products are free to CSUS students, so if you are interested in getting acquainted with Adobe software, just check out CSUS.edu!)

The most important advice of all, however, were the messages of confidence that the our dear alumni shared with everyone. They encouraged members to all to take risks, and to realize our self worth. This is always a very valuable message to realize, in one’s career and in one’s life!

​-Elysse   Fresquez