How Your Past Can Pave Your Future

There is something so nerve-wracking, yet still so exciting, about post-grad life. Personally, I hate change. I love where I am. Whenever somebody mentions graduating, I get a stress rash across my chest and entirely shut down – it is not something I am comfortable with. However, there is a slight sense of excitement that arises when I think about never having to do homework again.

As an Advertising & Public Relations major with a Digital Studies minor, there are so many job opportunities to come my way. That’s what I love about the program we have. I have some friends who want to go into celebrity publicity, some who want to cover sports, and some who want to enter an agency. The list goes on. Personally? I want to go into fun. That has always been my motto – have fun wherever you go and whatever you are doing. I realized quickly into my college career what fun looks like for me, which turned out to be event marketing. 

My First Dip in Event Marketing

I joined Grand Valley State University’s Campus Activities Board (CAB) my sophomore year in college, and it has truly shaped me into the leader I am. I found a love for being behind the scenes, planning events from start to finish, and promoting them. I have gained so many opportunities through CAB ranging from leadership all the way to website development, social media, event planning, promotional ideas, and more — and I find true joy in this work. CAB has made me excited about going to work and inspires even more excitement about post-grad. It makes me geeked, to say the least.

New Possibilities

Once I figured out what I loved to do, it was time to envision what that could look like, and the Grand Valley’s Public Relations Student Society of America (GVPRSSA) tour at Van Andel Arena opened my eyes to something that could be a possibility for me. On Friday, September 27, GVPRSSA visited the Grand Rapids arena and talked to the Communications Coordinator. It turned out she does exactly what I want to do. It felt like she did CAB work everyday. Working with artists, events, social media accounts, and more sounded truly so amazing, and keeping it within the city of Grand Rapids made it even more enticing. It was a refreshing taste of seeing something that I can do as a career, and something that I could be good at. 

It is crazy how your paths can shape you into who you are, and how they can totally impact your career goals. I am so grateful for every step of the way, and I hope they lead me to a career in event marketing at an arena/field/amphitheater in the near future. 

Dear Future You

Understanding the paths you have taken and the impact they have on your future is so important. Is there one lesson in class that really stuck out to you? Was there somebody in your life who had a positive impact on you? What are your hobbies? All have paved the way for you to be where you are now. If I had any piece of advice for people trying to get a grasp on what jobs to apply for, it would be to look where you have applied yourself in the past.

Bridie Tolley is a rising senior at Grand Valley State University studying Advertising and Public Relations with a Public Relations emphasis and a Digital Studies minor. At GVSU, she is on an intramural volleyball team as well as the president of the Campus Activities Board and the podcast director for PR Hangover. PR Hangover is the podcast that GVPRSSA produces, and she loves this opportunity to get to network in unique ways. This is her first year on the PRSSA E-Board and she cannot express her excitement enough.