Paula is a storyteller and tells us about the importance of PR, social media and brand strategy

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[00:00] SPEAKER_03: Welcome to Countless Podcast.
[00:05] SPEAKER_03: Hello, I'm Mario Tonigusi and this is Calgary's podcast on Canada's podcast network. Joining me today is Paula Worthington, who is principal of Worthington PR and Story. Thanks for joining us today Paula.
[00:18] SPEAKER_00: Happy to be here.
[00:19] SPEAKER_03: Let me just start by asking you what Worthington PR and Story is and what you do.
[00:25] SPEAKER_00: Our core purpose is to help brands share their stories with the world, which is something that we're really passionate about.
[00:32] SPEAKER_00: And we do that in a few ways. We focus on three key areas, one being public relations, one being social media, and then the third being stakeholder communication.
[00:42] SPEAKER_00: So everything from media relations to issues management to videography, photography, graphic design, social media strategy, basically all of the modern ways that brands, companies and people want to tell their stories.
[00:58] SPEAKER_03: Tell me why it's important that storytelling. And I think that's one of the key things.
[01:04] SPEAKER_03: Because I think a lot of communications and PR companies fail to do and fail to look at that aspect of why it's important to tell your stories as a company and as a brand.
[01:18] SPEAKER_00: Well, I think at the core stories are memorable. They're the way that we connect with each other.
[01:25] SPEAKER_00: So if we look back to way back when when it was oral storytelling, that's how traditions lived on. That's how the next generation knew how to do things.
[01:36] SPEAKER_00: That's how people entertained each other.
[01:39] SPEAKER_00: Then you invent the printing press and we start math producing books. And again, that's a great way of sharing knowledge, sharing information, entertaining, inspiring.
[01:48] SPEAKER_00: And here in 2021, how we tell stories has in some ways changed drastically. We still absolutely love to tell stories in a group around a circle, just like they did thousands of years ago.
[02:01] SPEAKER_00: We still love to pick up a book, but we're now in a struggle of technology where people are bombarded by messages and bombarded by stories and bombarded by varying degrees of truth and in some essence.
[02:14] SPEAKER_00: And being able to tell a story and create that connection with people, I think is really important.
[02:22] SPEAKER_00: And it helps to build from a business perspective. I think good storytelling helps build loyalty helps build brand retention.
[02:31] SPEAKER_00: It helps people connect whether it's with another person or with a business and helps even the consumer create a place of meaning for themselves in the world.
[02:40] SPEAKER_03: So when did you start your own company?
[02:44] SPEAKER_00: Early 2018.
[02:46] SPEAKER_03: Okay, and give me a little bit of that background of how it came about and why you wanted to start your own company.
[02:54] SPEAKER_00: I think I'd always been intrigued by being an entrepreneur. It was a long road to get there. I built up my career over the span of about 15 years, starting out in the not for profit and charity side.
[03:10] SPEAKER_00: Then moved to corporate PR working in the ski and sport industry and then working with WestJet on their marketing team.
[03:19] SPEAKER_00: And then I went agency side for about nine years and then from there realized it might be great to kind of create my own thing.
[03:28] SPEAKER_00: And I've learned a lot from amazing leaders throughout those years in my career.
[03:32] SPEAKER_00: And I wanted to be able to choose the brands I wanted to work with, choose the team I wanted to work with, and be able to create something from the ground up was really inspiring for me.
[03:45] SPEAKER_00: I knew it would be a ton of work, which it is. And I'm sure we'll talk about that. But for me, ultimately, to be able to put my own style towards what I wanted to work on and how I wanted to do it was really what propelled me forward.
[03:58] SPEAKER_03: Okay, so I don't want to use the word cushy, but you had a nice cushy job before starting your own company, right?
[04:08] SPEAKER_03: And it's up to you if you want to mention the company name because it's a competitor in some ways right now.
[04:15] SPEAKER_03: But was it scary to leave something that was stable, secure to venture out on your own?
[04:25] SPEAKER_00: I think that, and you know, I'll kind of start by saying that I worked with two agencies, Brooklyn PR and Rostra T. J.
[04:33] SPEAKER_00: which are amazing agencies and I learned a ton from both of them. And they were, it was a great part of that career journey.
[04:40] SPEAKER_00: And absolutely when you decide to go on your own, it is scary. And I think one of the big things, which was probably more in hindsight, which is a lesson that I've learned as an entrepreneur is that if you're going to go, you have to go all in.
[04:52] SPEAKER_00: You can't just dip your toe in the water and call yourself a swimmer. You have to take the plunge and I think I was prepared and willing to do that.
[05:01] SPEAKER_00: But I didn't really let that consume my thoughts at the time. I just, you know, I live on my own. I pay my own mortgage.
[05:10] SPEAKER_00: So failure wasn't an option for me. It was simply, I'm ready. It's time. And I'm not by nature. I would say I'm not a huge risk taker.
[05:20] SPEAKER_00: I'm not a, you know, throw all my bets on the table. So I plan. I figure out what I need to do. I think about what my dream scenario would look like.
[05:31] SPEAKER_00: And then just one foot in front of the other, I plug away and I just move forward towards it. So for sure, there is that trepidation and, and, you know, leading maybe what's comfortable.
[05:43] SPEAKER_00: But I've never really settled for being in a comfortable state. And I've always tried to push myself towards doing something new and different and taking what I learned and hopefully what I've contributed in my career prior to that.
[05:56] SPEAKER_00: I think really helps set me up for success to go out on my own.
[06:00] SPEAKER_03: Let me, we're going to talk a little bit about being an entrepreneur in a little while. But I just wanted to get a little bit of background from you, Paula.
[06:08] SPEAKER_03: Like are you from born and raised Calgary or somewhere else?
[06:11] SPEAKER_00: Born and raised in Calgary. Yeah, I started my career. I moved to Toronto for four years after university to work for an amazing organization called an actus.
[06:21] SPEAKER_00: But ultimately, I think I'm a mountain girl at heart and love this city. I love, I love how, how people do business in Calgary. I think it's such a warm community. And so after four years.
[06:35] SPEAKER_00: And I've traveled a ton and I'm sure we'll talk about that too, but Calgary's been home.
[06:40] SPEAKER_03: So tell me just a little bit about in terms of that background of like what got you into this whole industry and feel like what was the attraction for you?
[06:51] SPEAKER_00: I've always been drawn towards marketing and PR and communications.
[06:59] SPEAKER_00: When we were kids growing up in our family, we were always reading books. My dad is a retired English teacher.
[07:06] SPEAKER_00: My mom is a clicker fiatist. So words and language have always been part of my DNA, I think. And so, you know, reading was always really important.
[07:17] SPEAKER_00: Writing was always really important. I realized that I really enjoyed it. I, you know, whether when I was younger keeping a journal.
[07:25] SPEAKER_00: And then as, you know, as I went into my 20s, I started doubting a little bit with travel writing as a passion hobby, which I still do.
[07:32] SPEAKER_00: We'll hopefully do more of in the coming years with the pandemic, hopefully behind us soon.
[07:39] SPEAKER_00: But ultimately, I think I think I knew that I liked the business side of, you know, for example, an agency and working in PR and, you know, running the numbers and operational aspect of it.
[07:52] SPEAKER_00: But I really loved the creative approach to of communications and language. So it was really the best of both worlds. I'm the, I was the university student that would run from her accounting class to our art history class and love them both.
[08:07] SPEAKER_00: So I definitely wanted something that that had the business side, but also could lend itself to a lot of imagination and creativity.
[08:14] SPEAKER_03: Okay, I have to ask this question because being a journalist myself, I see it all the time, right? But why is 95% of the industry female?
[08:25] SPEAKER_00: I have no idea.
[08:28] SPEAKER_00: It's not really good question. I don't, you know, it's funny. I have people's point that I don't to me. I don't really dwell on it.
[08:34] SPEAKER_00: I really have no idea. I really think, I really think that there should be amazing equality in any industry, you know, whether it's whether it's favor right now favors men or right now favors women.
[08:51] SPEAKER_00: I would I would encourage more, more men to join the field. And, and I have, yeah, I have no idea why that's the case, but it is currently very heavily dominated by women.
[09:01] SPEAKER_03: Yeah, let's talk a little bit about that being an entrepreneur. First of all, what is what's your favorite thing about being an entrepreneur?
[09:11] SPEAKER_00: Top of the list, I love what I do. I think that I really enjoy respect, appreciate the clients we work with and our team that we have.
[09:22] SPEAKER_00: And being able to step inside of an organization and help make a difference and help them move the needle forward, whatever that may be, whether it's a corporation, whether it's a charity, whether it's an amazing entrepreneur, being able to kind of
[09:38] SPEAKER_00: on an agency level, dabble and get to know a lot of different industries and similar to probably your career, when you're a journalist is you get to get a glimpse and insight into all kinds of different fields and lots of different leadership styles and people.
[09:55] SPEAKER_00: And ultimately when we know that we're helping them make a difference and helping achieve goals together, that's really rewarding.
[10:02] SPEAKER_03: What on the flip side, what don't you like about being an entrepreneur?
[10:07] SPEAKER_00: Well, on the flip side, when you love what you do, sometimes it can be hard to turn off.
[10:12] SPEAKER_00: There's always something else to do. There's always something you can be working on. The list, you know, the inbox is never a zero. And that's a great thing.
[10:22] SPEAKER_00: It means your business is doing well. And the list is never completely crossed off. There's always something that can be done.
[10:30] SPEAKER_00: So I think it is finding that balance between loving what you do, but also knowing that sometimes you have to just say, okay, enough for today.
[10:40] SPEAKER_00: I'm tomorrow's a whole new start.
[10:42] SPEAKER_03: Paul, you don't Paul, Ben, Ginkgo.
[10:46] SPEAKER_00: The artist.
[10:48] SPEAKER_03: The artist. Okay.
[10:49] SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
[10:50] SPEAKER_03: I got to tell you a story. And I'll ask you a question after that. But Paul's a good friend of mine. Paula was with the Calgary Harrel years and years ago.
[10:59] SPEAKER_03: And then decided to pursue a career as an artist. And he's now really internationally known artist with his work.
[11:08] SPEAKER_03: But I remember talking to Paul one day who said to me that the toughest thing for him was juggling two things, right?
[11:15] SPEAKER_03: Number one was what he does, which is an artist. He's an artist.
[11:21] SPEAKER_03: Second thing is he's also a business owner. Right. So, so you've got the work. And then you've got the business part of it.
[11:28] SPEAKER_03: And you know what? I understood completely when I ventured out onto my own after my years at the Harrel.
[11:34] SPEAKER_03: What he was saying, how do you juggle those two? Like, you know, in some ways it's two jobs in one, right?
[11:44] SPEAKER_00: For sure. I say there's almost.
[11:49] SPEAKER_00: There's there's almost there's three. There could be more. But there's the business and there is the, you know, all the things to do to keep a business organized and running and growing.
[11:57] SPEAKER_00: And all of that. There's the work at Del which which I still love, you know, some people love running a business because they love running businesses.
[12:06] SPEAKER_00: I really love the work. I I roll up my sleeves. I get in there. You name it.
[12:12] SPEAKER_00: And then the third piece I'd say is that is kind of at high level imagination and creativity side where you're just thinking about really fresh new ideas, new ways of things that implement within the company or new campaign.
[12:27] SPEAKER_00: And then I find the most creative ideas for clients. And those are the ones I find are the most gratifying, but that can be the time that's difficult to get.
[12:36] SPEAKER_00: So I find my best ideas often come from a great walk or a great run. So all set out, you know, leash up the dog head out somewhere, usually first thing early in the morning with no intention in my head.
[12:50] SPEAKER_00: I might say, OK, I want to think about this upcoming campaign. And then I drop it and I just go and I try and immerse myself in nature.
[13:01] SPEAKER_00: And usually nine times out of 10, I'll come back with whatever I needed to figure out. So sometimes people sit at their desk and they're rocking their brain and they're trying to figure out the solution.
[13:11] SPEAKER_00: And for me, it's stepping away from it, ideally getting outside, getting into the woods, getting into nature and just letting, letting the ideas flow.
[13:21] SPEAKER_00: And sometimes I'll even bring a little, a little no pad or a mark a note in my phone if, if something kind of comes to me.
[13:28] SPEAKER_00: And I can just write it down and then continue on my walk and and that's kind of how I try and find that balance.
[13:34] SPEAKER_03: It's interesting to say that because I'm the same way I find that when I go on my walks, especially in my neighborhood, a lot of a lot of trees and stuff like that around in, you know, forest, et cetera.
[13:47] SPEAKER_03: And it does things just pop into your head. It's kind of funny because I have a business partner in one of my ventures and I often come back from a walk saying, OK, so I'm on my walk and you're all my thoughts that I just have.
[14:04] SPEAKER_03: Right. And it's great. It's great to do that. So when you look at being a business owner in Calgary and I emphasize in Calgary, what are the benefits of being a small business owner in this city?
[14:23] SPEAKER_00: Oh, I think there's a, I think there's a ton of benefits. I think that ultimately as the city has grown to be over a million people.
[14:30] SPEAKER_00: I think the business community is still relatively small and and people tend to be pretty well connected.
[14:37] SPEAKER_00: And what I think is really unique to Calgary is that when you, when you're doing business, if you build great relationships and you do great work, people are so willing to recommend you to other people or connect you to somebody else.
[14:53] SPEAKER_00: And I feel like it is a really good connecting type of city where people really encourage each other. They help each other out. I think it's, it's maybe, you know, goes back to to a lot of, you know, roots in Calgary.
[15:06] SPEAKER_00: We have a lot of people that, you know, have either been here for a long time or we have a lot of newcomers too and that willingness to show compassion and help each other out.
[15:15] SPEAKER_00: That kind of idea through thick and thin. I think really is still a strong part of our business culture here.
[15:22] SPEAKER_00: It's a city I know well. I mean, having grown up here.
[15:26] SPEAKER_00: You know, I know how to navigate who's who and what industries thrive and what the opportunities are.
[15:33] SPEAKER_00: But I really think it comes down to really great people in our city.
[15:37] SPEAKER_03: What's the best piece of advice you've ever received on being an entrepreneur?
[15:43] SPEAKER_00: Oh, I've received so much advice and and I, you know, there's so many things I can think about. I think ultimately though, you have to kind of comes back to the idea of doing doing what you love, you know, you really have to love it.
[15:58] SPEAKER_00: You can you can learn a new skill and you can learn to apply a new piece of technology to your business. But ultimately, the end of the day, if you don't love what you do and if you're not making a difference, then then what's the point of doing it?
[16:14] SPEAKER_00: So so for me, it's always been led by passion. It's always been led by wanting to support others and wanting to make a difference.
[16:22] SPEAKER_00: And if I didn't have that, I don't think I would be able to be as successful as I am.
[16:27] SPEAKER_03: Yeah. So when you, you know, you talked a little bit about turning it off, right?
[16:32] SPEAKER_03: The day and it's tough, right? It's tough.
[16:35] SPEAKER_03: If you're a, you know, a business owner yourself, because you got so much going on, but then also the plugged in world that we live in, right, makes it even more difficult.
[16:47] SPEAKER_03: So I'm just curious. And I think you mentioned that I know you mentioned, but travel is a big thing for you.
[16:55] SPEAKER_03: What kind of things do you do? Well, we'll talk a little bit more specifically about travel in a second, but I'm wondering if other kind of things you do throughout the day to kind of step back and relax.
[17:10] SPEAKER_00: Yeah. It's always a work in progress, I think, for all of us trying to find balance. I've tried to revert to getting up a little earlier, but not necessarily with like, get up earlier.
[17:21] SPEAKER_00: And then feel like you have to get 15 things done before 8 am.
[17:26] SPEAKER_00: I've made it to him and to try to get up earlier, but enjoy a bit of a slower morning. So going on a little bit of that extra long walk, maybe setting aside and getting a couple of things done on a personal to do list before that 8 am mark.
[17:41] SPEAKER_00: Can you know, enjoying a great cup of coffee, catching up a bit on the news and, you know, it's kind of that that saying about, you know, when someone gets told they should meditate for 10 minutes and the person says, no, I don't have time for that.
[17:56] SPEAKER_00: And then the wise person says, well, then that means you should meditate for an hour. So I find for me is just just having a little bit of that longer, slower start to my day.
[18:06] SPEAKER_00: And accomplishing a few key things and really setting my intentions for the day just eases me into to being the boss I want to be and and the business owner I want to be.
[18:19] SPEAKER_00: Having a dog is great because again, you know, they need exercise and no matter what the weather is doing outside, you know, you're getting out there.
[18:27] SPEAKER_00: And I think there's something really, you know, from a physical activity perspective, but also mentally just getting outside first thing in the morning.
[18:36] SPEAKER_00: And you know, makes me really appreciate the seasons makes me appreciate the changes in weather and knowing that, you know, you can get out there no matter what's happening outside and that really sets me up well.
[18:47] SPEAKER_00: I try and make physical health a priority. So, you know, scheduling in trips to the gym scheduling in yoga classes scheduling in a ski day in the mountains scheduling in a hike because if, if, you know, if a meeting can take precedence, why can't my own health also take precedence.
[19:05] SPEAKER_00: So that's often usually in the evening. I do that kind of thing. I'm always try to read to be reading a book something that ignites my soul, whether it's a great novel or a biography or a piece of knowledge.
[19:17] SPEAKER_00: And I think that I'm not really a fan of fiction and knowing, you know, being mindful of where you're spending your time. I think that, you know, time when you are relaxing, if you're mindful about it can be really relaxing. I try and I try and not waste time. I try not to, you know, just aimlessly scroll social media for ages on end.
[19:37] SPEAKER_00: And just being mindful of being productive when I'm working and being mindful of resting or doing the other things that fill my cup when I do have that time.
[19:48] SPEAKER_03: All right. Now, you talked about loving what you do. And I know one of your passions is travel. Where did that come from? Where'd that passion travel and initiate?
[20:01] SPEAKER_00: Good question. Probably it's probably a little bit in my blood with my family. We have family all over the world. So it probably has a little bit of a gypsy soul element to it.
[20:15] SPEAKER_00: It's funny though, as you know, a passion of mine over the past probably 15 years has on the side been doing some travel writing and photography.
[20:25] SPEAKER_00: I really love visiting off the beaten path destinations. The last, you know, the last 20 months has been challenging because that had to be shelved a little bit.
[20:37] SPEAKER_00: But I am looking forward to doing more of that. For me, you know, capturing the world through a lens and being able to walk around somewhere new with a camera in hand is always been gratifying.
[20:49] SPEAKER_00: And I think it's the curiosity element to discovering a new place. I like getting myself out of my comfort zone. I like new experiences for me.
[21:00] SPEAKER_00: You know, some people can find travel quite stressful and draining. And for me, it's, it's very energizing. So meeting new people or trying to pick up words and a new language, trying new food, seeing new places, trying to figure out the fabric of a city and a place that's completely foreign to me.
[21:18] SPEAKER_00: That to me is very energizing. I know some people would be like, like that, no, that's not what I want. I want comfort. And I, and I really do relish the uncomfortable.
[21:29] SPEAKER_00: When I was in my teens and early 20s, I did do quite a bit of backpacking. And it's funny because I would, you know, back in that day, you didn't have your iPad with you.
[21:40] SPEAKER_00: You every probably two weeks would seek out an internet cafe and you go and sit down. And I was really good about keeping a travel journal and I sit down, find the internet cafe, you know, you pay your two dollars an hour or whatever.
[21:54] SPEAKER_00: And it would be really slow Wi-Fi. And, and you would, you would write a message home to be like, I'm still alive and everything is well.
[22:02] SPEAKER_00: You know, and you would, you would check in every week or two and that's how it went. And so I would try and substance to my notes home and I would go back and I'd be sitting there in the internet cafe and I'd have my journal and I kind of pull the best of and I'd start, you know, a little bit, I'll build a price and start writing things that had happened to me.
[22:22] SPEAKER_00: And I tried to always use a little bit of element of humor and, you know, things that were surprising and embarrassing, what I saw, what I felt.
[22:30] SPEAKER_00: And as the trips went on, I didn't realize this, but people with, you know, I'd send it to poor friends and family, but they would start sharing it. And the next thing you know, you hear from someone and being like, oh, someone in my office sent me this email about you being in, you know, bali or whatever it was.
[22:45] SPEAKER_00: And so I'd realize that people were actually really looking forward to these emails and then they were starting to share them around like this is pre Facebook.
[22:53] SPEAKER_00: And so that to me was really rewarding and gratifying. And so it just, I think from there, became an opportunity to start to use bigger platforms and, and as much, you know, the businesses, my, my core time and, and my core work, but being able to fill my bucket by going out, having great experiences, experiencing destinations in a world of, you know,
[23:15] SPEAKER_00: in a way that some people don't or going to places that people maybe don't give a second thought to has always been really rewarding and, and I've had an opportunity to see some amazing parts of the world and also discover a lot of really cool places in Canada that, yeah, I think are amazing and incredible when I think that people should, and hopefully they have over the past two years too, is taken more opportunity to kind of explore our own backyard right where we live, but also, you know, getting to know and under the world.
[23:45] SPEAKER_00: Understand all the different elements that make our country what it is because ultimately that's what's going to keep us together versus dividing us.
[23:53] SPEAKER_03: So I'm curious how many countries have you visited?
[23:58] SPEAKER_00: I don't have an exact count 30 something.
[24:01] SPEAKER_03: Oh my.
[24:03] SPEAKER_03: Alrighty, I'm going to go into some rapid fire questions, okay?
[24:08] SPEAKER_02: Sure.
[24:09] SPEAKER_01: Okay, super.
[24:10] SPEAKER_01: Favorite drink.
[24:13] SPEAKER_02: Coffee.
[24:15] SPEAKER_01: Favorite food.
[24:17] SPEAKER_02: Pizza.
[24:19] SPEAKER_01: Okay, favorite movie.
[24:22] SPEAKER_01: Ooh.
[24:24] SPEAKER_02: Ferris Bueller's Day Off.
[24:25] SPEAKER_01: Oh, really?
[24:27] SPEAKER_01: Favorite book.
[24:30] SPEAKER_00: The Alchemists by Paulo Quello.
[24:33] SPEAKER_03: Interesting.
[24:34] SPEAKER_03: Okay, favorite vacation spot.
[24:37] SPEAKER_00: Oh man, anywhere right now.
[24:39] SPEAKER_00: I love Ireland.
[24:41] SPEAKER_03: Okay, super.
[24:42] SPEAKER_03: And favorite journalist.
[24:45] SPEAKER_00: Oh, Marna, I'm glad you said that.
[24:50] SPEAKER_03: Well, that was super, Paul.
[24:51] SPEAKER_03: I really appreciate your time and help in this.
[24:54] SPEAKER_03: Just one last thing.
[24:56] SPEAKER_03: If you were having to some parting words for entrepreneurs out there and for perhaps.
[25:04] SPEAKER_03: Would be entrepreneurs.
[25:06] SPEAKER_03: What would you tell them?
[25:08] SPEAKER_00: I would say make sure you have an amazing team around you.
[25:15] SPEAKER_00: Both, you know, whether it's your own team that's working on the business, but also a great team outside the business.
[25:21] SPEAKER_00: I have lots of amazing mentors, friends, family members, other business owners, service providers, like accountants and bookkeepers.
[25:30] SPEAKER_00: And they all believe in me and in what I'm doing and help create a great environment.
[25:39] SPEAKER_00: So lean on them when you have to know your own strength and work on those.
[25:44] SPEAKER_00: Also know your weaknesses and work on those two.
[25:47] SPEAKER_00: And know what you're good at.
[25:49] SPEAKER_00: I sometimes get get in trouble for saying this, but you know, people say, oh, follow your dreams.
[25:54] SPEAKER_00: You can do anything.
[25:55] SPEAKER_00: I don't think everyone can do everything.
[25:57] SPEAKER_00: I think you have to know what you're good at and know what you're interested in and passionate about.
[26:03] SPEAKER_00: And then you can work towards success.
[26:05] SPEAKER_00: But, you know, surround yourself with great people.
[26:09] SPEAKER_00: Keep putting one foot in front of the other and.
[26:13] SPEAKER_00: And do what you love.
[26:14] SPEAKER_03: All right, super.
[26:15] SPEAKER_03: Thanks for joining us today, Paula.
[26:17] SPEAKER_03: Thank you.
[26:18] SPEAKER_03: All right. That was Paula Worthington, who is principal of Worthington PR and story.
[26:23] SPEAKER_03: I'm Mario Tonogusi and this has been Calgary's podcast on Canada's podcast network.
[26:29] SPEAKER_03: Thanks for joining us today.