As I walked through the doors of The Dance Collective, the familiarity was comforting but the reality was daunting. This week I took my dance shoes off and slipped into my shiny new PR shoes!

Sitting down with the Director and Assistant Director for a brief induction, I was informed of a new system change that will be introduced to their stakeholders within just a few days. They then went on to say how integral my new role was in assisting the company during this transition. “Do I even have the skills to do this?” I thought to myself. The pressure was real, and I had only just started!

However, before completely giving in to my self-doubt, I took a deep breath and pulled out my notebook. I began (messily) jotting down a to-do list, complied of my new responsibilities, skills I needed to learn ASAP, and any additional information that could be helpful for my new role.

 

My main mission for the week: Webflow.

Essentially, I will be responsible for communicating the company’s new system change via The Dance Collective website. This will entail creating and designing a new website page clearly outlining all the necessary information, and most importantly, it must be well received by the clients and customers.

How did I land such a task on my first day? Well within minutes of the meeting, the Director asked if I had any previous experience with website design, to which I responded – very excitedly… and maybe a bit too quickly – “yes!” For Uni assignments and with blogging being an old hobby of mine, I have created and designed plenty of websites across many different platforms. I was more than excited to jump on board with their website needs… until l I met Webflow. “What is this thing?!”

 

(This meme I created sums it up perfectly).

 

Well, 50 YouTube tutorials and almost 1000 Google searches later, I think I’m starting to get a pretty good idea!

Navigating this software is hard work. Buttons that you think would do one thing, do something completely different. Additionally, there is a whole Webflow language to learn (the terminology is puzzling to say the least). I also quickly discovered how one wrong move could take down the entire website. Yikes! In other words: it is not the most user-friendly software. However, despite all this, I was determined to not let this get me down. After all, it was only my first day!

If I can take away one piece of advice my tutors have given me over the years, it’s to persevere. University has taught me how there will be many challenges to face throughout a career in PR; and among many skills, PR requires the ability to take initiative, problem solve, and adapt quickly. So, while navigating a new software isn’t the most intense challenge, it has proven to be a great example as to what I can expect when I enter the real world. Plus, the silver lining is this is one extra skill to add to my CV!

To overcome this challenge, every night this week I have taken the time to learn more about Webflow in preparation for the following day. Taking time to learn outside of my internship hours has not only demonstrated to my supervisor my strong work ethic, but it has also been a good reminder that I shouldn’t be so quick to doubt my capabilities.

Hopefully by my next post I will be able to call myself a Webflow Master. Until then, wish me luck!