Meet Rebecca Wallace
Rebecca, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us. Where does your story begin?
When I was in elementary school, I won the schoolwide book club – twice – first in 2nd grade and then in 6th, and I’ve had the creative bug ever since. In graduate school, I figured out how I might incorporate my love of writing into my career. I got a Master of Mass Communication with an emphasis in PR and got my first job in the field that I remain in today. I’ve used my writing to promote a winery and resort, the state of Georgia and many of its communities, and dozens of social issue nonprofits. I’ve written words that came out of the mouths of Atlanta mayors, Georgia Governors and a handful of other elected officials around the state. I’ve told the stories of visionaries, community leaders and cancer survivors. I’ve grown to focus my work on lifting up people and organizations that want to make their communities better, and I do that by helping them craft their messages and tell their stories.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey has been a fairly smooth road?
I realized quickly I am not made for the (sometimes) cut-throat, billable hours competition that comes with trying to climb the ladder of a traditional PR firm. It was painful mostly because the kind of clients I wanted to work with were not the most valued in the corporate culture. The couple of niche, privately-owned firms I joined over the years were a much better fit, but when I then saw myself fighting battles as the partners did even though my name wasn’t on the door, well, that’s when it became crystal clear it was time to go solo. It was indeed a bumpy road to get here, and honestly, it was a lay-off that first pushed me. But it turned out to be a blessing in disguise, and I never looked back.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I help people with some sort of communications problem. Whether they need to raise their profile, promote a program or advocate for a piece of legislation or government action, I start with their messaging and help them determine what they need to say. Then I develop and implement specific strategies that will most effectively solve their problem. It might be placing stories or opinion pieces in the news media, or developing digital communication targeted to stakeholders, or providing new content for their website, or all of the above. Sometimes it’s looking at the inner workings of an organization and figuring out ways to improve how to share information internally.
I specialize in supporting organizations that are working for the greater good, so typically, social issue nonprofits or government agencies. Because I am fortunate to be able to be selective about the clients and missions I want to support, I choose causes that I myself believe in, and that shows in my work. I think my clients see that passion straight away and value it. I am also extremely diligent about follow up; never keeping a client hanging! And I often go beyond the call of duty to seek out ways to connect people I work with to opportunities that will help further their cause. I see the world as one big circle. What goes around comes around, and I love helpfully connecting people. When I connect someone to someone else who helps them, it helps me. It helps us all because we are all connected, really.
Before we go, is there anything else you can share with us?
Aside from my work, I am most proud of co-founding a professional networking group for women who work for ourselves. The purpose of Southeast Atlanta Lady MOB (My Own Boss) is to encourage members to connect, support each other, provide professional advice, and grow our businesses. The geography base of the southeast Atlanta neighborhoods is to build community and patronize (for meetings) local businesses. We meet monthly, and the group has become such an incredible resource for its members. It’s a really great, talented and amazing group of women, many of whom have become close, trusted friends of mine.