Episodes

PR Pros, marketers, creatives, we know that much of our work requires “energy out” behavior. To stay mentally and physically healthy, we need to take the time to replenish bodies and minds. It’s easy for negative thoughts to take hold if you are physically or mentally run down. It isn’t helped by the truth that many PR pros are wired to be overthinkers. It helps us succeed professionally but can also lead to unnecessary rumination. In today’s episode, we share our experiences and talk about wa...

Working for yourself is great, with many items in the “pro” column. Two of the potential challenges for many solo practitioners? Asking for client feedback and reviewing ourselves. In today’s episode, we discuss several ways to solicit this information from clients and put systems in place to measure our own professional progress. How about you? How do you check in with your clients, with yourself, to make sure you are achieving goals and serving your clients well? Visit us at soloprpro.com to ...

In this episode of That Solo Life we give an update on how California Assembly Bill 5 (AB 5) is already penalizing solo entrepreneurs, independent workers, and small business owners and what you can do to prepare should similar legislation come your way. Then we switch gears to share excellent advice from our brain trust of Solo PR Pro “smarties” who have so generously shared advice for anyone considering starting a business in PR, marketing, or any other field. We touch on a few points in this...

2020 is here. What do you want to achieve over the next 12 months? How will you get there? In today’s episode we discuss the importance of setting personal and professional goals and the many methods of achieving those goals. What are your goals? How do you keep your momentum? We want to know - contact us online to share your thoughts. One of the ways to achieve your goals is to share them with your friends and peers. When you become a member of Solo PR Pro, you have access to our private Face...

It’s a new year, the perfect time to look at what’s ahead and that’s just what the USC Annenberg Center for Public Relations has done with their newly-released piece, The Top Public Relations Career Trends of 2020. From the growing importance of data and analytics in PR to the need for PR pros to be creative in their work, learn how you can fine-tune your skillset to make 2020 a great year! We’d like to thank Mary Barber of The Barber Group for sharing this article in our Solo PR Pro Premium Me...

As we close out the year, no, wait, the DECADE, we take a moment to reflect on the past year, talk about ways Solos celebrate the holidays (Oh yes, here is the link to the BBC’s self-employed holiday party video.), and how to reset and recharge for 2020. Want more Solo PR Pro? Visit us at soloprpro.com or contact us online to share your thoughts.

Hard to believe, but 2019 will soon come to a close. What does that mean for your business as you strive to end the year strong? From bookkeeping to budget projections, strategy to business development, we discuss ways to both close out the year with clarity and prepare for success in 2020. What items are on your year-end business checklist? Visit us at soloprpro.com or contact us online to share your thoughts.

In today's episode of That Solo Life we're joined by Caitlin Copple Masingill, the founder and president of Full Swing Public Relations, a micro-agency that helps women leaders to shape and share their stories. Today she shares how her business has flourished by targeting a niche that aligns with her talents and her purpose as well as refusing to accept work that does not align with the value of her work. Sounds good, doesn't it? Listen and learn how she does it. What are your tactics for build...

The holidays are here and, just like Santa, PR Pros are checking their lists and checking them twice. If you purchase client gifts (and know that it is ok if you don’t), listen to this episode where we discuss our favorite ways to show our clients our appreciation at the holidays and throughout the year. What clever and cool item have you sent your clients at the holidays? We want to know! Visit us at soloprpro.com or contact us online to share your thoughts.

As solo business owners, Karen and Michelle are grateful for a landscape and technology that allows for making a living as Michelle puts it, “with Wi-Fi and a dream.” In this episode of That Solo Life, Karen and Michelle focus on this week of the Thanksgiving holiday with a conversation about gratitude. What are you grateful for this Thanksgiving of 2019? Visit us at soloprpro.com or contact us online to share your thoughts.

The holidays bring an extra set of pressures, personally and professionally. How can you experience this holiday season with joy? Listen to this episode, where we discuss managing expectations (Isn’t it always about managing expectations?) and creating a mindset where we maintain our productivity in our business and allow room for the joy of the season. How do you navigate the holiday season as a solo business owner? Visit us at soloprpro.com or contact us online to share your thoughts.

In today’s episode, we cover two new updates in the digital marketing world. Google’s Zero Click Searches This Forbes article, Why You Can’t Neglect Your Google Presence Anymore, talks about how so many of us never leave the Search Engine Results Page: “In the first quarter of 2019, nearly 49% of all U.S. Google searches ended without a click. And, over 60% of mobile searches are zero-click searches. People are finding what they need right there on the Search Engine Results Page ( SERP).” Thi...

Today’s episode comes to you fresh from the PRSA 2019 International Conference, the annual gathering of public relations and communications professionals from across the globe. This year’s conference took place in San Diego, California, much to the delight of Karen, who will always be a SoCal girl at heart. Highlights of the three-day conference featured a keynote from Bob Woodward and a powerful session hearing the story of Laura Ling’s North Korean experience firsthand. Three main takeaways:...

Modern life moves fast. It’s a simple fact that you loathe, love, or tolerate. This is especially true for PR pros as we seek to serve our clients well, looking out for them and keeping their projects moving forward while working on our own innovative thinking and professional development. Part of the cause is an increase of incoming messaging from a variety of sources – text, instant messaging, project management platforms, and the like. We can let the open fire hose of information knock us ov...

In today’s episode of That Solo Life we ask the question, “Where Do You Work?” Not in what field or for which company but, where do you work? From a home office, a coffee shop, a co-working space, or perhaps you rent your own office space. The beauty of working independently means we have the option to choose the locations where we do our best work. So, where do you work? We want to hear about your best spaces to get work done. Visit us at soloprpro.com or contact us online to share, even send ...

In September 2019 the California legislature passed CA-AB5 aka The Gig Worker Bill. In short, according to this recap from the San Francisco Chronicle, AB5: “...codifies, clarifies and grants exemptions to a 2018 California Supreme Court decision called Dynamex. Both AB5 and Dynamex make it harder for companies to label workers as independent contractors. They use an ‘ABC’ test that says workers are employees if (A) they perform tasks under a company’s control, (B) their work is integral to the...

We all hit bumps in the road, no matter what profession we are in. In this episode we discuss ways to handle disappointments in our businesses and how we can learn from them and gain a fresh, motivating perspective. We’d love to hear from you! Share your tips - visit us at soloprpro.com or contact us online.

Like many of you who work hard in your professions, sometimes PR pros need a little levity. We need brain candy like Real Housewives, Property Brothers, or catching up on the latest chatter about the Royal Family. Sometimes, these pop culture moments dovetail with our work. Listen to this episode to find out what helps us stay in the know about pop culture and how it relates to the PR world. We’d love to hear from you! Visit us at soloprpro.com or contact us online.

In this episode, we are joined by longtime friend of Solo PR Pro, Craig Severinsen, founder of BrightWorksPR. Craig’s specialty is helping Marketing and PR entrepreneurs attract more clients for their business, which is right up our alley here at Solo PR Pro! Craig Severinsen’s specialty is helping entrepreneurs, especially those of us in the PR and marketing worlds, create systems to grow business, determining where is the best place to position yourself to be impactful and profitable. Within ...

Today, we’re joined by Dr. Lori Baker-Schena, co-founder of LeadHERship Consortium. She is a leadership consultant and professional speaker who works with individuals and businesses to achieve high levels of excellence, productivity and profitability. Dr. Baker-Schena brings to her clients 35 years as a healthcare public relations and marketing consultant, and 25 years as a tenured university professor teaching public relations and journalism. Dr. Baker-Schena holds a bachelor’s degree in Journa...

In this Labor Day episode, we decided to focus on what we like to do when we’re not working. We all need time to decompress and recharge if we’re going to stay at the top of our game. Sometimes that means a walk in the park, other times it’s parking ourselves on the couch for some binge watching. What helps you recharge? We want to know. Visit us at soloprpro.com or contact us online.

This episode of That Solo Life grew from a conversation in the Solo PR Pro members only Facebook group surrounding what happens when we get what we want, when the professional goal or “get” we’ve dreamed of happens, and we find ourselves fighting feelings of fear or imposter syndrome. Of course, we really DO want the success that we work so hard to achieve. Join us for this conversation about this thought pattern and how we can stay a step ahead of it in our work. We’d love to hear your experie...

In this episode of That Solo Life we discuss one of the aspects of work-life we might think we leave behind when going solo: office politics. People are complex and all business is based on relationship so However, as savvy PR pros, we have the advantage of our communications tactics to put into use in these situations. Ideally, we try to steer clear of whatever might be causing static within your client organization. When that’s not possible, pull out the good old artful redirect when in conve...

Solo PR Pro life provides flexibility in our daily routines, but it’s often not until life hits hard that we truly appreciate being our own bosses. In today’s episode our guest is Solo PR Pro member Daria Steigman, founder of Steigman Communications. She shares how she took her show on the road earlier this year as a means of processing and recalibrating following the loss of her parents within a short span of time. We discuss how you can prepare for when crisis hits, how to maximize your produc...