By Helena Carnell:
As of this week, I have been a senior account executive at Five not 10 for a whole month. Four weeks down, and many many more to go on this exciting journey!
With two years of prior experience in tech B2B PR, I enjoyed being able to contribute across all of my accounts practically from day one. But, I am getting ahead of myself….
Hey! I am Helena Carnell and here are five things you should know about me:
1. I have a journalism degree
I chose to study journalism at the University of Portsmouth as I wanted to do something that allowed me to be creative and write content, and also improve my communication skills. Coincidentally, this was where I found public relations, which would quickly become my desired career.
In my second year, I did a PR module where we planned two campaigns, one for a wildlife rescue centre and the other for Hampshire Fire and Rescue. Following this initial spark, I got to experience PR first hand with two different work experience placements and, as soon as I graduated, landed myself my first PR role working in B2B tech.
2. Why I chose PR
Apart from my desire to be creative and write content, I also chose PR because I realised the industry has the potential to drive change, raise awareness and help previously unheard voices to shine through. I liked the idea of helping a company stand out from the crowd for the good that they are doing. This is also why I chose to focus on technology as I realised how paramount this industry is, and how essential technology is to everyday life.
Now that I have been in the industry for two years, I can safely say that I made the right choice! I love the fact that my role includes coming up with engaging and fun ways to portray an article through a pitch, interacting with journalists and ultimately seeing the content through from start to finish. I feel fortunate that my degree in journalism guided me here, and helped me develop my creativity, content-writing, and confidence, which have all been critical within the role.
3. What I have learnt three weeks into remote working
Going from a hybrid role to fully remote, I had my reservations and nerves in the lead up to the job. After all, remote working isn’t for everyone. But, after three weeks, I know it is for me.
From the incredibly supportive network at Five Not 10, to my own increased productivity (and of course, not having to drive down the M3 ever again), I think I have settled into this new way of working quite easily. That being said, the current weekly check in with a few of the team in my hometown is also very appreciated as I quickly get up to speed.
4. PR & my personality go hand in hand
Some of the many qualities a PR professional needs include creativity, curiosity, being detailed-oriented and being strategically-minded. Luckily, these are all traits that come naturally to me and can be seen coming through in some of my out-of-office hobbies.
After work and now occasionally during (that is, during my lunch break), I can be found winding down by doing a paint by numbers. I paint cities I have visited on holiday and, once finished, can be found decorating the walls of my new home. I am also a stickler for a routine, starting every day with Wordle, Strands and Connections.
5. Some of my recent achievements
This year has been a wild ride for me, including a lot of new experiences. Not only have I started a new job, but I also bought my first home (at 24, which I am ever so humbly pointing out)!
Apart from these two fairly amazing new achievements, my next best one would be my current 150-day streak on Duolingo. Can you guess which language I am learning?
Don’t worry - I will put you out of your misery. I am currently learning Norwegian as I would like to be able to speak to my (you guessed it) Norwegian relatives in their native language. Whilst progress feels fairly slow at this stage, please do ask if you want me to say “the bear is eating the moose” in my family’s native tongue. I would be happy to oblige!
As we quickly approach 2025, I look forward to seeing what’s in store next year for me and what my next achievement will be in this new role!