Entering this career “by accident” is something most PR professionals can relate to. Getting into public relations by mistake seems to be the most traditional route into the industry, and for Letizia Maria Mollinedo, senior account executive at Fight or Flight — the accident was a happy one.
Leaving the University of Manchester with a degree in international disaster management and humanitarian response in 2019, Mollinedo says she “scrambled to get a job”. In 2023 she became an external relations and communications Goodwill Ambassador at UNHCR.
“I landed in the Goodwill Ambassador program at the UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, and it was a lot of social media, PR and doing what an agency does,” says Mollinedo.
During this time, she gained experience with social media and was unknowingly doing most of the tasks a PR professional working in an agency would do.
“It was truly the best training ground. It was really intense but a really great, incredible experience. I just fell in love with it.
“I had never heard of PR but a colleague suggested I look into agencies, and I was like ‘what’s that’. I didn’t know what an agency was, I had no idea what job title to even look for.”
But, with the help of her former colleagues and research of her own, Mollinedo secured a job at Fight or Flight as an account executive in 2024.
Feeling like an imposter
As we discussed her transition over to a PR agency, Mollinedo reveals that the jargon caused confusion: “I got into it and someone asked if I could write a byline, and I didn’t know what it was.
“I had written bylines before, but when you're working in such a different sector, that's not what they call them. I think it definitely contributed to a bit of imposter syndrome and overcompensating and trying to prove that I deserve to be there at the beginning.
“Looking back, it makes sense. I think anyone would have reacted that way, and I wish I had a bit more kindness and compassion towards myself. All the skills were there, I had everything, I was just going into a different industry.”
Mollinedo notes that the longer she has been in PR she has seen that others have the same feeling, and when she approached her management at Fight or Flight, they were supportive.
“I love that this is a female-led industry and there’s a raft of talented but powerful women who have experienced what I have, and they lead by example.
“I went in there [to my managers] and I was quite honest about it [the imposter syndrome] and I was received with so much love and respect, and that was great.
“I feel like especially when you're starting out you’re trying to prove yourself, so if you start saying I need help and asking questions, it can be difficult. But, I’ve learned that it’s always better to do that over pretending.”
A sense of pride
When asked whether her degree gave her transferable skills that came in handy for a career in PR, she says: “There’s a lot of managing risk and diligence [in politics] and that bleeds into PR.
“Politics is all about people, a lot like diplomacy. I was working with influencers and celebrities and trying to fundraise for a specific goal. That’s basically what we are doing with campaigns, right?
“I suppose it's all about mobilising people to act. It’s very intense and involves having to be very disciplined and detail oriented. Also, you just learn so much just by observing, because everyone is so capable. Everyone there wants to be there for a very distinct purpose.
It was this skill that led her to work on a campaign she is most proud of: The CPR Bra for St John’s Ambulance. “It was a big moment for me,” she says.
“I also got involved with Hi Vis Stress Vest which was an incredible thing to work on, I was so lucky to be pulled into that project.”
Given what she has achieved since joining the sector officially in 2024, I asked if Mollinedo has an ‘Everest skill’ — something she never thought she could overcome, or get the hang of, when first starting in PR.
She reveals: “When you see something in the news and then you have to creatively think about what's missing, and how we can plug in a new perspective. It's still something that I'm learning day-to-day, and it’s one of the best parts of the job.
“And it’s hard, but it’s definitely a trainable skill. It’s like playing the piano, you have to practice. You have to get a little bit lucky, you have to work on the relationships with the journalists, you have to know your client like inside out to know their messaging. It takes a lot of skill and patience and luck, it’s something that’s very difficult to master.”
Words of advice
For other junior PR professionals entering PR with a degree that isn’t in public relations, she offers the following advice: “ think what I wanted to come across for anyone that's thinking about joining PR is to not get intimidated by all the ‘scary words’. And, yes, it is scary to start with.
“It can be intimidating to join because some agencies can work a little bit like machines, but if you just stay curious and ask for help when needed, you’ll be fine.”
Last month, Mollinedo was promoted to senior account executive at Fight or Flight — and we eagerly await what’s next for her career.
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