That Solo Life: The Solo PR Pro Podcast

Episode 15: LeadHERship Development with Dr. Lori Baker-Schena

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 Journalism and a MBA from California State University, Northridge, and a doctorate in Organizational Leadership from the University of La Verne.

A dear friend to Solo PR Pro, Dr. Baker-Schena’s turn toward working as a leadership consultant and professional speaker came about six years ago when she moved out of her comfort zone as a tenured professor at California State University, Northridge to properly pursue her dream of becoming a motivational speaker.

Noting a lack of leadership training specific to women, she and colleague Sabine Liedel co-founded LeadHERship Consortium in the summer of 2018. “A company devoted to helping women become successful leaders, focusing on solution-driven strategies that combine joy, empowerment and hard work,” LeadHERship Consortium offers in-house training, keynote presentations and events on the key areas women must face to grow as leaders:

• Stop beating yourself up with negative self-talk.
• Own your talents and strengths and trust that everything else will fall into place.
• Having support and mentorship of other women is key.
• Know your value and learn how to communicate it in a way that people hear you.
• Replace work-life balance with work-life flexibility.
• Live in the solution, not the problem.

Learn more about the LeadHERship Consortium, including upcoming events like the LeadHERship Conference taking place February 26-27, 2020 in Lakeview, California by visiting www.LeadHERshipconsortium.com and www.LeadHERshipconference.com.

Want to know even more? Visit us at soloprpro.com to read the recap blog or contact us online to share your experiences as a woman in leadership.

Episode 14: Guilty Pleasures

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.

Episode 13: Fighting Imposter Syndrome When You Get What You Want

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 experiences. Visit us at soloprpro.com or contact us online.

Episode 12: Professional Politics (No, Not Those Politics)

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 conversation.

Overall, the goal in any client relationship is moving the work forward in a way that is beneficial to them, and to you.

How do you deal with the internal dynamics of a client when the office politics begin to affect your projects? We’d love to hear your experiences. Visit us at soloprpro.com or contact us online.

Episode 11: Taking Your Solo PR Pro Show on the Road with Daria Steigman

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 productivity while traveling, and why it’s important to have a change of scene now and again.

Daria Steigman is an entrepreneur, business owner, and writer. Daria is also a senior marketing communications and digital strategist who helps organizations communicate effectively with employees, members, customers, the business community, policymakers, and other key stakeholders. She is a leader and team-builder with a 20+-year record of crafting data-driven strategies to support core business goals. Daria’s diverse clients have included Fortune 500 companies, universities, associations, government agencies, and international organizations.

She is a frequent speaker on topics related to both business strategy and marketing communications and digital media. She is also the author of a blog that focuses on the business of running a business, entrepreneurship, marketing communications, social business, social media, strategic thinking, and what she calls Independent Thinking.

She’s been a contributor to Workshifting.com and to Overdrive, the blog of the Entrepreneurs’ Organization. She also created and wrote a monthly business column for IABC’s CW Bulletin. She holds an undergraduate degree from the University of Chicago, and masters’ degrees in industrial and labor relations (MILR) from Cornell University and liberal studies (MALS) from Georgetown University. She wrote a book of poems as part of her MALS thesis.

In her spare time, she loves to hike and run half-marathons. And she’s a huge baseball fan.

Episode 10: PR and Tech - 2019 Trends

There’s no doubt that technology continues to have an impact on the PR industry. So much so that the USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism issues an annual Global Communications Report based on survey results from PR professionals and students and, new this year, CEOs of small, mid-size, and large organizations. In this episode of That Solo Life, we discuss their findings and what they mean for our industry and the way we do our work. Look for more takeaways from this report on the Solo PR Pro blog.

Episode 9: The Economy of Time

A recent Money.com article by Laura Belgray, I Spent $300 on One Uber Ride (And Would Do It Again in a Second). Here's Why I Don't Regret It, led to a discussion here at That Solo Life about what aspects of our work and lives in general cause us significant stress and how can we offset it.

In the article, Belgray shares about her experience as she prepared to attend a writing retreat. The destination was accessible by train but the more she thought about getting to the train on time, switching trains mid-trip, and the rest of the journey, she knew this mode of travel would completely stress her out and have a negative impact on her experience at this event. She decided to spend $300 on an Uber ride to the retreat and hasn’t looked back.

As solo business owners (cliché alert), our time truly is money. An expense that might not make sense at first – outsourcing laundry, grocery delivery, massage to combat our time at the keyboard – could be the very thing to buy you productivity and peace of mind.

What is the one necessary “extravagance” that helps you most?

Episode 8: Take a Break

Have you taken your vacation? If your response is “No,” you are not alone. Taking time off is a challenge as a solopreneur. Sometimes it’s because we’re too busy to get away. Often we’re either reluctant to step away from our business or simply never get around to making the plan to take time off. 

It is important to take time off because we need to regain perspective, get inspired, and simply rest. These summer months are the ideal time to plan a getaway. Corporate life tends to slow down in the summer, so take advantage of this dip in activity. 

• If a real deal vacation isn’t possible, take a working vacation. Set the expectations with your clients, advising when you’ll be working. The rest of the time is for you and your family.
• Plan a retreat to work on your business. Pick a cool new hotel or nearby locale you’ve been wanting to visit.
• Get help from a virtual assistant while you’re away. You might realize you like it and choose to continue working with them, which could lead to expanding your business. 

What is your ideal way to make sure you take time off as a solo business owner?

Episode 7: PR Pros - Stop Annoying Journalists

Today’s episode was inspired by a recent MuckRack article pointing out the two major ways PR pros can be annoying to journalists: PR agencies requiring staff to use pitching techniques that no longer suit the current journalism landscape and client expectations focused on producing call logs over long-term results.

Rather than become another barrier to journalists doing their jobs, how can we improve on this?

Education: help clients understand the value of moving away from a focus of activity for activity’s sake. Journalists are outnumbered by PR people so constant contact to show “productivity” will not achieve the actual goal.

Results: together with the client, decide on the desired, measurable goal and work toward achieving it.

How do you balance client expectations with maintaining good relationships with your journalist contacts? We’d love to hear from you.

 

Episode 6: How Not to Manage It All

The secret to managing it all? Don’t. 

Wait, what?

It’s true. If you’re feeling overwhelmed, it’s a signal to stop and do an evaluation. You may even want to schedule a business retreat so you can truly focus on your business.

You may have too much on your plate. Take a look at whether your clients are profitable. Is it time to raise your rates, expand your team, or turn away business?

As a business owner, you get to choose. Choose what is best for you.

Some tips to keep your work life in check: 

• Create or update your lists
• Practice self-care
• Shift your focus from Time Management to Energy Management

We’re not saying you should miss deadlines or leave projects unfinished. It’s likely that the same drive that motivates us to be solos is also the culprit when we are hard on ourselves. We need to learn how to balance that drive.