This week we learned a lot about the sustainability of a business, and I was intrigued to find that starting a business is likely the easiest part of it all. There is so much more. As I frequently relate back to my own experience this semester leading a PR team for a nonprofit organization, I have seen in our evaluation stage that setting goals and objectives require a check-in, or a checkpoint (as we learned this week), in order for success. Benchmarks are key. Initial motivations can easily be forgotten when you are caught up in the planning and execution parts of the business model, as those steps are equally important.

With COVID-19 happening all around us, learning about how the entrepreneur must stay on top of initial goals is wise information. For my team specifically, we chose to implement a tactic that included building relationships with corporate social responsibility officers. With COVID, this has made our implementation nearly impossible. While we can offer our client the steps to succeed once this is over, we cannot effectively provide them with as many connections and partnerships as measured with our initial research with so many worldwide changes. As I learned today, diversifying not only your revenue streams, ideas and target audiences, but also your means of achieving this success, is a smart business move. Because I did not have a full sustainability plan for my campaign, we have to figure it out step-by-step. Moving forward, I will reference the information we discussed this week to ensure a better, realistic and more sustainable “Plan B” for the future.

This week I had the absolute pleasure of meeting Janine Warner, co-founder and executive director of SembraMedia, a global nonprofit launched in 2015 helping digital media entrepreneurs become successful using Spanish content. Warner spoke with our class via Zoom and blew me away with her vast knowledge and versatile career background. Warner encouraged us to take a deeper look into the two or three skills we have as individuals and present them as our personal trifecta when searching for careers. As I am learning each day about being a leader, Warner’s reflection on her journey as an entrepreneur was inspiring for me.

I like how she shared that she had to lay people off to realize she didn’t want to lay people off; she emphasized the importance of a fast-paced digital environment; she is knowledgeable and curious about different journalistic restrictions and guidelines in different countries and tailors accordingly, along with much more. Another huge takeaway for me was her advice on leading a team in a digital space, especially now amidst COVID-19. I love how she emphasized that the “milling” part of the workday is key, and how incorporating virtual cocktail parties and coffee breaks is important for the preservation of a team dynamic. My favorite piece of advice was that “relaxed reflection time is a part of your research.” I hope to keep in touch with Warner and maybe take one of her courses online in the future.