In this episode of frankly…
What happens when two powerhouse communicators turn their passion for mental health into a Michigan top-ranked podcast?
Rachel and Dan are joined by Lolita Cummings and Melissa Thrasher of Eastern Michigan University, co-hosts of Enlighten U, for a conversation on how they blend personal storytelling with professional insights to support student mental health.
With rich backgrounds in communications spanning from nonprofits, corporate and higher education, they both dive into the power of mentorship, the impact of live podcast events and why creating space for vulnerability matters – on campus, in the workplace and beyond.
Tune into the latest from the Enlighten U podcast here.
Let us know what you took away from this week’s conversation, and, as always, be sure to rate, review, and subscribe!
Tune in every other Wednesday and subscribe wherever you listen to podcasts (Spotify).
The transcript below is AI-generated and may contain minor inaccuracies. Tune in to the episode audio to hear the full conversation!
Transcript
Rachel
Welcome. Happy you’re here. It feels like I need to have some sort of like good to start this out with the topic that we’re getting into with mental health.
Dan
Yeah, yeah, definitely some positivity here coming in. So today we’re talking with Lolita Cummings, who is a public relations professor and the program and internship coordinator at Eastern Michigan University and also Melissa Thrasher, who is executive director of Media Relations and social media for Eastern and the two of them came together a couple of years ago to start up and now co-host the Enlighten U podcast, which covers mental health issues that are affecting college students. Really interesting format where they always have a student, always have a mental health professional on there so they can kind. You know, keep things relatable, but also give the valuable resources for their listeners who are looking for some supports as well.
Rachel
Yeah. Tangible solutions versus just talking about it, let’s put something into action and help more than even just the person that’s on the other side of the microphone, right?
Dan
Yeah.
Rachel
They talk a lot about that. They also get into their backgrounds, which have spanned together almost every industry. They have some really awesome backgrounds that led them to education. They talk about that. They’re just in general, like rays of sunshine.
Dan
Yeah.
Rachel
So I think they have a lot of good advice to offer if your students, this is a great episode for you. Yeah. And with that, we can start our conversation.
Dan
Yeah.
Rachel
Hi, Lolita. Hi, Melissa. Welcome to frankly.
Melissa
Welcome. Thank you.
Lolita
Thank you. Thank you, Rachel and Dan for having us.
Rachel
Absolutely.
Melissa
Yes, it’s a pleasure.
Rachel
We love having fellow podcasters on because they they get it right. Everyone knows the secret sauce. So happy to have both of you on. I want to kind of start out and Lolita, why don’t you kick us off, give us a little bit about your background, how you got to where you’re at now, what you do your, and your career path?
Lolita
OK, you know, I started in comms right out of college when I was a senior at Western Michigan way back in the day, I was working for credit unions because working for credit unions was my path even through high school and Co-op, and as I was going through college, I worked in credit unions. And so the last one I was working at in Battle Creek realized I was about to graduate, so they created a position for me.
Dan
Ooo, Nice.
Lolita
So I’ve never been outside of comms and from there I went from the credit union, I went to Sloan Museum, which is in Flint, I was living in that area, it’s a local history museum. Although before I started there, I knew absolutely, I knew very little about history. I was not a history buff. I knew very little about museums. I wasn’t a museum seeker, but very often, as we do with communications, you learn, you know, you learn your business, you learn the businesses that you were representing, so I did that. That went on to work for YWCA, that had probably 25 different programs that I was promoting and that was a lot of fun. So that was my nonprofit went on to Ameritech, which is now, you know, AT&T. So I went in to technology and knew absolutely nothing about the technology of that. And I was manager of employee communication so it was my job to break down all that technology and put it into stories that were interesting to our employees and their families. And so to do that, I had to go to our technicians and say, OK, now explain this to me like I’m a third grader and then explain it again because I had to be able to understand it and make it interesting to others and so I did that, but only for about 6 months until Eastern called and actually Eastern called two months after I started working for Ameritech.
Rachel
Hmm.
Lolita
That was 31 years ago, so now I’m a professor of public relations at Eastern Michigan and I absolutely loved it. I found my calling and I have stayed there.
Rachel
I was going to say talk about finding your niche. I always tell people, especially students with internships, try to do one in a nonprofit, one in agency, one at corporate. Like really figure out where in comms you feel like you find your fit because you’ll learn where you don’t want to be very fast. That’s like the number one thing. So.
Lolita
That is very true.
Melissa
Exactly.
Lolita
And I ended up where I didn’t where I said I wouldn’t be. I tell everyone that education is our is our family business. My mother was a teacher. My sisters, I have two sisters, one is a retired teacher, the other ones a school psychologist. My aunts and uncles were principals and teachers. And so I was always a rebellious one when I say that is not what I’m going to do.
Rachel
Yeah.
Lolita
Since that is exactly what all of you are doing, and eventually that’s exactly where it landed.
Rachel
It always finds you. My parents had a whole career in automotive and I said I’ll never work in automotive. Guess what? My largest client base is now. It’s automotive, right?
Lolita
It happens.
Rachel
It finds you.
Melissa
Yeah, right. It happens. Yeah, it does happen. But, you know, I think that is the beauty of public relations and communications in general. You can apply those skills almost anywhere. And I think that’s just an amazing thing so.
Rachel
It’s what makes a good communicator.
Lolita
Yeah, yeah, that’s a the thing.
Dan
Yeah.
Melissa
Absolutely. Oh my gosh, you said it, Rachel.
Lolita
Right.
Rachel
Well, Melissa, give us give us your background. What about you? What’s your career path? How did you end up in education?
Melissa
Alright. Yeah, exactly. Ohh my goodness. Well, so I graduated from Michigan State, go green!
Rachel
Go white!
Melissa
And my major, Yeah! My major was journalism. So I didn’t know I would be sitting in the seat right now at Eastern Michigan at all, because I wanted to go into broadcast journalism. But I found an opportunity at PGC Campbell, so I did work for a communications agency long ago and our biggest client there was Ford Motor Company. So I got exposed to a number of different opportunities working as an assistant account executive for PGC Campbell. And that was where I found my passion for the the nonprofit sector. So after a few years there, I jumped to the Southeast Michigan Community Alliance. And that is a government agency in Taylor and I had the pleasure of working with Jack O’Reilly. He was the former mayor of Dearborn and I stayed there for about 6 years. So like Lolita, it was a new position that was created, a PR position for SMCA. And I got to work on a number of substance abuse and prevention programs and workforce development programs. So as a quasi-government agency, stayed a while until Walter left or not. Walter, I’m sorry. Stay a while until the Dearborn Mayor or Jack became a mayor. And then after that. It’s so many places I’ve been after that I went to the American Heart Association, so I credit a lot of what I know to the American Heart Association. I stayed there close to 10 years. Worked on a number of amazing national programs brought those to life in the Detroit area, from Go Red to Women to the power to end stroke campaign. And that’s where I developed my foundation and and learned a lot of media personalities in the Detroit area. And then after that healthcare called me, and that’s where my mom is actually. So landed the spot at then Beaumont. Now it’s Corewell Health and dabbled a little bit in internal communications. Found out that wasn’t exactly my passion, but I stayed there for a few years and. Managed just wonderful people at all of the hospitals, so that was great. Then I found an opportunity at Ascension Michigan for a little while and then after that I landed a spot at Eastern Michigan University where it’s now home, and there’s no turning back. It’s a great institution and I work with wonderful people like Lolita.
Dan
That’s awesome.
Lolita
Thank you.
Dan
And there’s there’s a lot in your background there of different types of industries from sounds like more consumer businesses to nonprofit to government, what are, what are some of the things that you learned along the way that?
Dan
That maybe you applied today and your work with Eastern is there or how does maybe how does academia differ from some of those other markets that you’ve worked in?
Melissa
Ohh wow. So I love the first part of your question because I have been around. Part of my expertise is event planning because I come from fundraising and and and really being a part of some major event. And so at Eastern, we’ve had the opportunity to do some community related events. And one that comes to mind is Thankful, which the President and his wife stand behind, and that’s an opportunity during Thanksgiving to give away food to the community. So I love community events and I love the fact that Eastern has embraced community and they love to give back. And so I’ve been able, you know, to to help expand that program and it’s taking a different shape from us delivering turkeys and things to the community, to a drive thru and that’s an idea that I brought to the table. The other thing that I would say is that I’ve had the pleasure of working with some amazing EMU alum. So one thing that I’m very proud of is that and this was recent. We have a Temptations member that’s a former EMU alum and he’s he’s rather young and so he came back, brought the Temptations back and they performed during halftime during a football game
Dan
Oh that’s so cool.
Rachel
That’s very cool.
Melissa
And that was during the summer time. It was very cool. So because I have experience and and media buying and and and planning events, I was able to apply the the media buying skills and create a nice campaign to help promote that which was different for for EMU, so I love to sit on planning committees and I think that’s one of the things that I bring to the table as part of my illustrious communications career.
Lolita
And you’re so good at it. I mean, everything that she does, you know, is going to be done with excellence and it it all comes out very well because of the detail and the attention that she gives, she’s really good at that.
Rachel
Event planning will do that that you got to.
Melissa
So I must say event planning will do that, yes.
Rachel
As details are like so fine, if you you can take that so many places.
Dan
That’s Rachel’s world.
Rachel
Yeah.
Melissa
Yes, I I love it. I love it. I love taking people’s idea and just elevating them and so that’s the beauty of, you know, my background. And also I always let Lolita know she’s like my PR person. So you might hear. I heard she’s the best person to work with. I mean, she’s just amazing. But same same to her attention to detail. She has big ideas, she does not take no for an answer. So yeah, she’s just great to the communicator all around do you?
Lolita
I think we do work really well together.
Rachel
Do you guys do the the disc at all? The disc assessment? Have you done that?
Melissa
Oh, no, me either.
Rachel
Not OK. You both just remind me of so it’s DISC and there’s like pie charts and D and I the I so I’m an ID and the ID is like very much like cheerleader teamwork and you both give me, like, that cheerleader kind of like good energy. So I was just wondering where you if you did the disc, where you sat on the desk.
Lolita
But now we’re now. We’re gonna have to do it.
Dan
Yep, you got to do it.
Lolita
I am writing this down.
Melissa
I wrote it.
Lolita
To pick up the DISC assesment to see where I land?
Rachel
Do it as a company and it’s nice because then you know how people work and how to build teams better and kind of like how to work with each other. So and just curious. Lolita, talk a little bit about going from in the similar vein to the question that Melissa just answered. How did you go from working in PR and everything to being the teacher? I feel like going through college I took away so much for education, but then I got on the job and was like, Oh my God. Like, there’s so much more even there. How do you try to fit that all in to teach these students and arm them really well when they go out into the world?
Lolita
You know, that’s that’s really interesting. I think for me it was a pretty easy transition because I grew up with educators, right? So for you know in my house, so everything was a teachable moment. So you never got away from from education. So when I started working full time in PR, one of the first things I did was I got an intern because I wanted to be able to incorporate that education – still didn’t think I was going to be a teacher – but I wanted to be able to I wanted to incorporate that education question into my job where I was giving back to others and helping bring, you know, students along. So when I decided to actually, I was working in in full time PR for about 8 years before, well, probably about six years before I decide, oh, maybe I want to teach, maybe I want to dabble into a little bit so I went back and I got my masters degree so I could at least teach at a Community College. And even then, it was, you know, bringing on interns, you know, teaching them what I knew and what would help them. So when I decided to join the university, one of the first things that I did was I required internships of our PR majors because I think it’s that important that they get that.
Dan
Yeah.
Lolita
That hands on, you know, workplace experience, but then also just thinking back to what I needed at that time and then making sure that they get it, you know whether it’s doing interviews with professionals so that they can possibly set up a mentoring relationship, bringing professionals into the classroom because I’m, I consult sometimes, but I’m not out there full time so I don’t know everything that’s changing in the industry just from, you know, reading it and how do you how do you find that out better by other than with the people who are actually doing this, so bringing those things in I think. Teaching, naturally, was already in me. Even I was fighting tooth and nail, but it was already in me, so that part, that part was was easy for me. It was simply always having a mindset, OK, what do they need? And it’s not necessarily what do they need. It’s like what a lot of times it’s what do they need as individuals. So one of the things that students are often frustrated with me about is that I don’t I’m not one of those professors who has a day by class, class by class, schedule, because I tell them I’m gonna teach you based on what I see in you, so if we need to take more time with news releases, I’m not gonna, I’m not gonna lock myself in with the schedule of day by day schedule because then I have to move on before you’re ready. And I’m only going to move on when I know that you’re ready. So I think it’s just again. Details is paying attention. Those details, knowing what they need. Knowing my students. I’m I’m grateful that I’m able to teach in small classrooms, so most of my classes are no more than 20 students and very often fewer than that.
Dan
That’s awesome.
Lolita
It is. It’s wonderful. So I get an opportunity to know them. I get an opportunity to know where they’re struggling. I get an opportunity to know how they learn best and they get an opportunity to know what they want to do, so when they graduate, they’re about to graduate I can help them. I can reach out to my peers and others to help them, to hope to get them started on their careers and and be successful at what they came to me for.
Dan
Yeah. And. And you’re also the internship coordinator for for the program, right.
Lolita
I am, yes.
Dan
I’m sure that kind of, like, more personal connection really, really goes a long way in in helping set people up with the right thing.
Lolita
Yeah, it does, you know, and just to watch. Yeah. Because honestly, there’s only so much as educators, so we can do in the classroom. Yeah. We have to pass them off to you all.
Rachel
Yeah.
Lolita
You all have one of my students Nina, who, you know, graduated from our program and and hooked us up with it. And honestly, I mean, Nina was our superstar, right? I mean, Nina is great. You you have her in a classroom and Nina is going to take over, she is going to get the group together.
Dan
I can see that.
Melissa
Yes Mhmm.
Lolita
Whether they are interacting. That is Nina. Nina is always when you ask her to do something, all you have to do is consider it done. You can take it out of your mind cause it’s going to be done.
Rachel
Yeah.
Melissa
Absolutely.
Lolita
Yeah, but. And so when she graduated, she was impressive. But I’ve been talking to her since she’s graduated, and what you guys are doing with her, and how she’s thriving now that she’s at your agency.
Melissa
Yes.
Lolita
It’s so gratifying to see. So we can only do so much. Then we pass them on to you and then you all just.
Melissa
Yes.
Rachel
It’s setting the foundation in the classroom to then give them those skills because I always say to there’s certain things you can’t teach in a classroom and when you have interns, that is for me, like, the drive to get something done. The drive to throw out ideas and be a part of the team and then follow through on them like.
Melissa
Hmm.
Rachel
That’s hard to teach. Sometimes you either have it or you don’t, right, like.
Melissa
Absolutely. Yeah. And you, you have to want it.
Rachel
You have to.
Melissa
And and that that going along the lines of what the Lolita was saying about Nina, I actually learned about Nina Julita. So a lot of my interns come from Lolitas program, and Nina has always wanted PR. She’s always wanted to be in PR, and that’s what I admire about her. She was just a ray of sunshine. And I’m glad that she’s found her home at Franco.
Rachel
Yeah.
Dan
Yeah. She was a great fit, which and she just came on full time from her internship so it it all worked out so well.
Lolita
Yeah, we are excited.
Melissa
Yeah.
Lolita
And I was excited that, you know, she joined Andrea Kenski, who graduated from our program years ago, right. I mean, and I I told you, Nina, I said you are landing at a good place for you girl. You could not have landed at a better place.
Melissa
Yes. Yeah. Wow.
Dan
Yeah.
Rachel
Yeah. Nice little connections. I love that. So I think the other side of the classroom that both of you have experienced is the mental health side, right, so you have students that are going through colleges like the first time you’re on your own, you’re trying to figure it out. It’s not a, you know, high school and everything. It’s like you follow this path, we’re all on the same path, and then, you know, we graduate together. So talk a little bit about Enlighten U. Talk about how you got here, what it is, give everybody their run down.
Lolita
Enlighten U is our baby.
Melissa
It is, it is and we started what about a year and a half ago? Almost two years ago, with Enlighten U?
Lolita
Oh, we just ended our second season, so we started trying to find something like 3 years ago.
Melissa
Ohh my gosh. Yeah, it’s definitely our baby. And there’s so many pieces of Enlighten U. It’s it’s it’s, it’s just been a, it’s been an amazing journey just meeting so many students cause when Lolita gets to work with the students every day.
Rachel
Yeah.
Melissa
But with me, you know, it’s it’s it’s a little different, you know. I have my student intern. But to hear these stories, it just amazes me and the bravery of these students that we get to talk to is is just amazing. So we’ve covered a number of topics and and Lolita, your going to have to help me. Just yesterday we had a taping and we learned about a young man. He is a recent graduate and he had been struggling from a young age with his body image and you don’t hear men coming out, young people coming out talking about that and just hearing his journey, what he dealt with and you know the fact that he experienced loss but then found music as a source of inspiration, it’s just the moving podcast and and I know that when we have these conversations, other students can relate and that’s the beauty of what we do.
Dan
Yeah, and and your format is really cool. So you have you always have a student and a mental health professional on is that, that’s kind of the the format for the show, but why is that so important to you to always have both of those perspectives as you can talk through these issues?
Lolita
Yeah, yeah. You know it’s it’s important because you know, Melissa and I can guess as to what their issues are, but the students actually know. And another thing that we did was we established a student advisory board. So you don’t just see the student who’s on camera. There is someone running an advisory board who’s meeting with our students regularly who are giving us feedback on everything from the smallest to largest details on the show to what the students think about what we’re doing to the issues that are affecting them most, because that’s what we need to cover. We don’t, you know, we don’t need to cover what we think they want, we need to cover what we know they want and who’s better to tell us. And then it’s just not about listening to their stories. I mean, that’s important, them telling their stories. It’s really important. Like Melissa said, I applaud their bravery and coming and telling us what, you know, what’s bothering them most of what’s affecting the most. But we also need some women who can help. And so we were really blessed to have Aisha Mustafa, who who became our resident mental health professionals so she can sit there with that student and talk about the issues, but also talk to all students in general on camera because what’s going on with that one student that we have at our table is probably going on with hundreds of others and so she’s and she’s providing resources. She’s telling them where they can get additional help with certain things that they can do right here right now, but where they can get more serious because the university also offers so many different resources for counseling for students and a lot of students don’t know about it, they’re paying for it with their student fees
Dan
Right.
Lolita
But they don’t know about it. And so we also want to get them the professional help, the one-on-one help or the small group help that they need, so it’s important that we’re all at the table together.
Melissa
Yes.
Dan
And you mentioned relatability just kind of the kind of getting past that idea for listeners that, you know, they’re not alone in some of these issues because, you know, especially like, like Rachel said, it’s the first time they’re out on their own. It can be, it can be so hard to, like, see that in other people and to be able to hear it through your show and and kind of understand that. Yes, I’m not alone. And yes, there’s there’s resources is so valuable.
Melissa
Yes.
Lolita
Because it’s scary, you know, they leave the cocoon where they have all of this, this this strong support system and they come to the university and maybe they’re in a student org, but they’re probably not. They may not have that supportive community. And so they’re feeling isolated. They’re feeling alone. So just watching the show and having someone else see someone else with the same issue as you do and then knowing what to do about it and where you can go get some help. And we also encourage our students, and we’ve done this before, you know, to to come back, combat loneliness join a student org, seek out other students. Aesha does a really good job in helping students just who are in a classroom with someone else kind of strike up a conversation in a very non-threatening.
Rachel
Yeah.
Lolita
You know easy breezy way you know, hey, let’s let’s walk to you know, the next class together to make it easier for them to to make the connections that are important in college.
Rachel
Yeah, having a community in life is important.
Melissa
Yep.
Rachel
Life is important, right? You hear when you have a kid, it takes a village, it takes a village. But you need that village before you have a kid, right? Like that village should be established. The village should help you get to wherever you need right. Like so I think that’s an important piece. And if they’ve, you know, kids that are more shy or reserved, having those little tools in their toolbox from a professional to just help break the ice in something to start building that village is so important and you know, maybe they did come from a great and supportive family, or maybe they didn’t and they’re like, they’re really looking to build something like that. So, you know, finding something for everyone. And and we were chatting briefly before we started recording in Lolita, you mentioned the live show that you guys did. I want you to talk about that because.
Melissa
Yeah.
Rachel
Not only are they coming together and like relating to each other on the podcast, but then getting to meet a group in person like what a better place to build a community.
Melissa
Yes.
Lolita
Yeah, I’m gonna talk about it briefly because I want Melissa can talk about it, but it was it was amazing, you know, because I’m always in class and I’m talking to my students, they’re talking about the podcast and one day they said we want to be there because we normally record in the studio like you said, with four people at the table. Me, Melissa, a mental health professional, one student. We want to ask our own questions we have like. I’m like, OK, we can do that. We can do that, I think. But I’ll tell you, I didn’t know how much work it was gonna be it was a lot of work but when I tell you the benefits that we all got it from, it were like 10 fold or 20 fold. It was amazing to see the students come because first of all, they told us we wouldn’t be able to get a lot of students there. We recorded in a a theater that held almost 200 students and I was planning for food for, you know, 150 students. No, no, you’re not gonna get that many. When I tell you we looked up, there was a line at the microphone of students wanting to ask their own questions and that’s studio, I mean that, that, that the theater was was packed.
Melissa
Packed.
Lolita
Melissa worked to get high schoolers there. We had high schoolers,
Dan
Ohh cool.
Lolita
We had our students and they came through and they left refreshed and feeling like they have what they need. But I’m going to stop there because I am going to let Melissa pick it up.
Dan
Yeah.
Rachel
Yeah, and Melissa’s event planning came in hand right where you were, like. I know Melissa was like, I knew how much work it was gonna be, I know.
Melissa
You know Lolita, Lolita was very instrumental in all of this. I mean, you know, I mean, she’s like, we need this, we need that. So I didn’t have to like, share a lot of my event planning expertise with this because we were right on the same page as we started to to envision what this would look like, but I just want to talk about the entertainment element because we wanted to squeeze everything into this one hour, right? So of course, we had the food and we had the talk, but prior to that, OK. I’m gonna ask you both if you’re familiar with the J Hud line. So the spirit line that Jennifer Hudson does prior to her show when she welcomes celebrities onto this show.
Rachel
Ohh yes.
Melissa
It’s she just won a Webby not too long ago. Because it is, it’s gone viral. I watch it. We both watch it all the time on social media, but we wanted it.
Rachel
Yes. I was gonna say that I always see on TikTok, it constantly pops up, yeah.
Melissa
Yes, so Lolita and I are sitting back like, how can we make this even bigger? So Lolita was. Like well I want Swoop there. So Swoop is our mascot and I’m thinking, ah, OK, if we have Swoop there, maybe we need to do the spirit line. So then I talk to our social media person and I’m thinking, OK, now we gotta come up with the chant because Snoop can’t just go down this line and you know we follow Swoop to no chant or anything. So we did come up with a quick.
Rachel
Right.
Melissa
And did the spirit line, which was great for social media, I noticed my staff actually tagged Jennifer Hudson. I don’t think it went anywhere, but of course we. Yeah. So it was fun, but it was something that we did. We added all these fun elements. Lolita did not mention that she led a couple of dance choreography.
Dan
Okay.
Meliisa
You know what? What do you call it, line dances.
Lolita
Yeah, we we we wobbled and we we hustled and we wobbled and we have the cheer team and we had the dance team.
Rachel
Love it. Oh my God.
Melissa
Yes, yes, it was. It was. It was huge. So for our leaders to walk in with all of this excitement, you know what I’m saying, prior to the actual taping was just amazing. It brought all the energy and and I was surprised that the students wanted to get, you know, on on stage and and wobble and do all these fun things. And I’m like, OK, this is this is it. This is a great live studio audience, so we had a lot of fun and it was a great conversation. And again, you know, we were really happy with the number of students that had questions and wanted to engage.
Lolita
And the President and his wife came.
Melissa
Yeah.
Rachel
Yes, congratulations. How cool.
Lolita
And his wife came and sat front row and said the entire time. Yeah.
Dan
Yeah, you could see it in the video, like just how engaged people were and how big that crowd was. Like, if you haven’t seen it, I encourage, you know, anyone listening here to go check it out because it is really cool to see.
Melissa
Thank you.
Lolita
Thank you. Thanks to the plug and it is something that we’ve already really proud of, but it’s also something that I think will will help a lot of people because we did have more questions that were asked of specific students. Different students, high schoolers and college students. So I think people will find themselves and some of their mental health struggles and some of the questions and then get the benefit of the responses from Aesha.
Rachel
Yeah, yeah. Now you have to do it again.
Dan
Yeah.
Rachel
You gotta plan. Your next one recurring event now. No pressure.
Lolita
Right! OK, OK, Rachel.
Rachel
I love it. OK, last fun closing question for both of you and I feel like you guys are going to. Some really good answers for this. What is one piece of advice you would give your 21-year-old self so these you know Lolita for you, those students that you’re teaching that are you know now going out and you’re handed them over to the companies to have their internships. Most of your student interns, just 21. If you could look back at yourself at 21, knowing what you know now, what advice would you give her?
Melissa
Now, Rachel, that’s a really good question. Are we talking about the climate that we’re in now? So we were 21 now, are we talking about? We’re 21. What will we tell ourselves now that we have all this wisdom?
Rachel
I think the latter. So now that you’re 21 and you have all this wisdom and and you’re looking back, like in your time, you’re 21 in that day and age when you were 21.
Melissa
Got it.
Rachel
What would you tell yourself about the journey that you’re about to go on?
Lolita
I would say to have confidence to be brave and to be bold. I remember I was early in my career and I was. I was at the museum, so I was probably 23, probably about 23. And I joined the local PRSA organization the chap, and we didn’t have a chapter there, but it was a PRSA group right, and so I was sitting on one of the committees and I had been afraid to sit on that committee because, I mean, I was really intimidated by the other you know seasoned professionals. And so I sat on the committee and I agreed to we had we were having an event. I said, well, I’ll write, I’ll write the news release and there was. I wrote news release in a feature sword and I was really really nervous about it because I thought, you know, they have so much experience and I just saw them and these these huge figures and one of them came back to me later after I submitted and she’s like Oh, who wrote that? And I said I wrote it and she was absolutely. So she said, do you know how good this is? And I was like, I mean, you could just see my little chest puffing.
Dan
Yeah.
Lolita
Because I was so afraid of what they were going to think. And so I would say, have confidence in what you do. Work hard at it, obviously, sharpen your craft and then have have confidence. Be brave and be bold and let everyone see what you can do because. So many times and so many times I have interns, you know they’re introverted and they’re shy, and I get that. But I also have students who are not nearly as talented as they are and they thrive because they’re brave. They’re brave, they they meet people, and I think that’s really one of the keys to success.
Melissa
Yes, yeah, definitely in this profession, I mean, I can go on and on about what Lolita said and and for me, it’s along the same lines, believe in yourself. I just not too long ago, I had an intern, and she just had so many questions. And questions are good. But sometimes if you, you’re going to make mistakes.
Dan
Yeah.
Melissa
Right. Yeah. And you know as a leader. I’m. I’m not going to shame my my intern for doing that. You know I’m going to help encourage that person to overcome that challenge. And you know, and
Rachel
I think it’s the best way you can learn. Sometimes someone can tell you.
Melissa
Absolutely be afraid of making mistakes.
Rachel
Over and over, this is what you need to do. This is how you do it, but until you do it wrong, you know what? That’s a surefire way you’re never going to make that mistake, right.
Lolita
That is so true
Melissa
Again, right, like absolutely, absolutely, absolutely so. Yeah, that’s it, that’s. It, you know, believe in yourself and and and be OK with making mistakes because you’re human. I always tell my interns you’re human and it’s OK. You’re going to move on, you know, to the next project and forget about that mistake, you know, as you you go along your your career journey. So you know, we just said it best, just believe yourself. I remember long ago I I I had a manager that that shared those same words with me because again, I’m I’m young and I’m thinking, Oh my gosh, am I making the right decision. And and she said. Melissa, you have to believe in yourself. And I’ve carried that, you know, with me throughout my my journey. And sometimes I struggle, but I do hear her voice in my head that, you know, I I do have to continue to take chance chances. And it’s OK, you know, if I make a mistake because I’m human.
Rachel
Absolutely.
Dan
Everybody has done it.
Rachel
Yep. Actually, those mistakes led you to where you’re at and you’re happy with where you’re at, right?
Melissa
Absolutely.
Lolita
That’s that’s how we learn is is by our mistakes and the thing of it is one of our students who’s uh, who’s our intern, but he was also on the show, I think he said something that was really important, he said you know, with your mistakes, he said you remember longer than anyone else.
Rachel
Yeah.
Lolita
Most of them can’t remember it. Thinking you’re still beating yourself about it and no one else even remembers about. Let it go.
Dan
Or even noticed it probably.
Melissa
Yes.
Rachel
We’re honestly all too focused on ourselves, right, like.
Melissa
Yeah.
Rachel
Hey, let’s be real. So, no. Well, thank you both so much. I mean, you guys have such awesome stories, great backgrounds, tons of wisdom, I think you know, you guys are in the right careers. You’ve got what it takes to to be working with students and leading them. So I think you both ended up where you needed to be and it sounds like you agree.
Lolita
Thank you for the compliments!
Melissa
Yeah, so sweet.
Lolita
I really think we are where we need to be, but it has been an absolute pleasure to sit down with with you.
Melissa
Yes, so fun. This is what I needed.
Lolita
Thank you. Yes, and thank you for having us.
Melissa
Absolutely yes, thanks.
Dan
Thanks so much to you.
Melissa
Too, yeah, this was a.
Rachel
If there is. If there’s anything you guys do in the future that you want to talk about, let us know. Shoot us an e-mail, we would love to have you back on too. We always like to invite guests back.
Lolita
Thank you. Take care.
Melissa
Yes. Thanks, ladies. Yeah, thank you. Have a great Friday, yes.
Rachel
It was a pleasure having both Lolita and Melissa on the podcast. Today, so if you found anything relatable or just connected with anything. Find them on LinkedIn and shoot them a message and they would love to hear it. Check out, Enlighten U. It was actually just named the number one mental health podcast in Michigan.
Dan
Pretty cool.
Rachel
Very cool.
Dan
Yeah. So we’ll link. We’ll link them below so you can check it out and give them a listen. And. And they mentioned it there, but the live show is is really cool to watch, just to see how much engagement they’re getting out there.
Rachel
Yes, absolutely. Thank you for being here and tuning in today and we. Will see you next time.
