By Karis Frazier

At least that’s what I’m trying to tell myself. This is my third week interning at Touchpoint Magna Carta, a Public Relations agency in Accra. Since I have only taken one PR class so far, it has been a bit of a struggle to complete what I imagine are very basic tasks. Thankfully, my coworkers are extremely patient and open to teaching me what they know. 

The most recent challenge I have faced is making a PR plan. I created a PR plan based on a fake new product that Coca-Cola was going to launch. With little to no knowledge on how to successfully create a PR plan, I set out to complete the task. The next day I had to present it to my bosses. I finished presenting and was met with silence. I don’t think they really knew what to say because I had screwed up so royally. 

“Karis, Karis, Karis,” one of them said while shaking their head. They then gave me lots of feedback on how to improve my work. I was so embarrassed. But I stayed strong. I listened through it all and scribbled furiously in my little journal. I then thanked them for their time and all their advice and shamefully walked back to my desk.  

I then got to work on improving my PR plan and trying to make them proud. Already I felt better about it after getting their advice. At that point, it was almost the end of the workday and everyone started dancing. Looking around I realized they really did not care if I had messed up. These were kind people that were willing to help me learn. I am so grateful for that fact because I am quite sure that is not the last time I will embarrass myself in front of them. But I think I’m learning that embarrassment is better than holding yourself back from good opportunities.