Back to Basics: Navigating Your Career With Purpose

Recently, I spent an evening at my child’s elementary school career night, explaining what I do to children and their families. As I simplified the world of talent acquisition and public relations into terms a 7 year old could understand, something remarkable happened: I reconnected with the essence of the profession.

This experience got me thinking about you — recent communications graduates stepping into a rapidly evolving industry — and how sometimes the clearest career guidance comes from stripping away the complexity and returning to the basics.

Try writing down three moments from your life when you felt most alive using your communication skills. These moments — whether presenting a class project or managing your friend group’s social media — contain clues about your professional sweet spot. Your skills and interests are more transferable than you think!

Rediscover your “why.”

Remember that moment when you first decided to pursue communications? Before the deadline pressures, before the industry jargon, before the salary considerations — there was a spark. Perhaps you loved crafting compelling narratives, or maybe you excelled at helping people understand complex ideas. 

At career night, I created a simple matching game connecting skills with potential careers. What struck me was how many different professional paths stemmed from the same core abilities.

The communications profession isn’t a narrow hallway; it’s an open space with countless doors:

• The storyteller might thrive in content creation, brand journalism or corporate narrative development
• The relationship builder could excel in media relations, community management or internal communications
• The strategic thinker might find their home in crisis communications, campaign planning or communications strategy
• The visual communicator could dominate in social media content, design or multimedia storytelling
• The data translator might revolutionize measurement, insights or audience analysis

You don’t have to pigeonhole yourself. Your communications degree hasn’t prepared you for just one job — it’s given you a versatile toolkit applicable across industries and functions.

Dream big; start smart.

As someone who reviews countless résumés and portfolios, applications stand out when I see the evidence. Don’t just tell me you’re creative; show me something you’ve created! 

• Adjacent roles matter. Editorial assistant, PR administrative support or social media coordinator positions can be gateways to more specialized roles.
• Project work builds portfolios. Freelance assignments, volunteer communications for nonprofits or content creation for small businesses all demonstrate capability.
• Specialized knowledge creates lanes. Developing expertise in a particular sector, such as healthcare, finance or entertainment, can distinguish you from generalists.

A field of infinite possibilities

As you venture out into your career post-graduation, hold fast to the skills that form the foundation of communications excellence. Listen before speaking, write with clarity, strive to understand audiences, think critically and develop deep relationships. 

Your first job won’t define you. Each position should teach you something valuable. I’ve seen professionals who start in entry-level roles rise to communications leadership. I’ve hired former journalists who became brilliant PR strategists. Stay open to possibilities while remaining grounded in your core strengths.

What I hope you take from this is a balanced perspective: Be ambitious about what’s possible while being strategic about how you get there. The children at career night didn’t see limitations — they saw endless possibilities in the skills they already possessed. We would all do well to recapture some of that boundless thinking, tempered with the wisdom to take meaningful steps forward.