If I were starting my PR agency over today, there’s actually a lot I’d do differently.

And a few things I got so lucky on that I wouldn’t change them for the world.

Let me back up for a second. I started Jeneration PR, my PR firm, 21 years ago. I was an attorney practicing litigation, and I did a complete 180. I had zero experience in PR. No media contacts. Nothing. I just followed a gut instinct after I fell in love with a fragrance brand I discovered on my bar trip in London (of all places).

When I ran out of that beautiful fragrance, I tried to track it down (and this was 20-plus years ago, so Google wasn’t really Googling yet). Turns out it was based in California and nobody had ever heard of it. So when I reordered, I emailed the founder, a total stranger, and said I’d love to help her get some visibility. People stopped me all the time asking about it, and I wanted to help her get media coverage and sales. Send me a box of products (which, if you think about it, sounded a little scammy), and I’ll use them and give them to celebrities and magazine editors, and hopefully somebody falls in love with the brand as much as I did.

Somehow that lady on the internet trusted me and sent me a huge box of free stuff. I had lotions and shower gels making my whole office smell beautiful. I was still practicing law at the time, and I did all of it unpaid. I loved it so much. And I thought, if I could actually get paid to do this, it would be the greatest career ever.

Somehow, 21 years later, here we are.

I’ve learned a lot along the way, and I’ve been lucky enough to coach women all over the world for the last 15 years or so, helping them grow their own agencies. But if I were starting all over today? There’s a lot I’d do differently, so you can skip the long trial-and-error. So let’s talk about what I’d keep, what I’d ditch, and what I’d lean into harder.

When everything feels equally important

When you’re first starting, everything feels really important. Equally important. And for me, that’s paralyzing, because I don’t always know where to start or what to pay attention to. There’s so much advice flying at you from every direction, especially now that content is being churned out so rapidly with AI and everyone is putting their expertise out on the internet.

There are things I spent years figuring out that probably could’ve been done in months. Maybe weeks. Maybe even days now, with the right tools and the right people around me.

So here’s what I’d do from day one.

Niche down immediately

This is the most important thing to focus on when you’re building your business, and you want to attract a higher caliber of client and a higher retainer fee. It’s what I teach first in my programs.

From day one, I’d niche down. Immediately.

Because trying to be everything to everyone doesn’t work. It’s exhausting, and it doesn’t let people know you as the go-to authority in your space. You want to be the expert someone is confident recommending to a friend or a colleague.

And here’s the part people miss. Your niche isn’t just who you help. It’s who you serve and how you serve them. Both of those together. The industry you focus on, and the actual work you’re doing to help them. That’s your niche.

When you niche down, you become very recommendable (is that even a word? Let’s just say it is). People think of you. Nobody refers a generalist. Generalists don’t get paid premium retainers. They’re an afterthought, not the first name that comes to mind.

It’s also just less exhausting. As a generalist, you’re constantly making new connections and learning the ins and outs of a brand new industry every time. When you niche down, you get to go deep and become a real subject matter expert.

One more thing: choose areas that are also a personal interest. If you’re going to do this for more than two decades like me, you want to actually love the work that whole time.

Set real rates from the start

If I were offering some kind of introductory pricing, I’d be crystal clear with the client that it’s for a specific, limited time, and I’d explain why.

For me, I was honest. I’d say: I’m a lawyer, I have a ton of ideas on how to promote your brand, I love your products, and I can’t wait to share them with my media contacts. But I’m just getting started, so I’m going to show you how hard I can hustle and what it’s like to work with me. We’ll do an introductory rate for a very limited period, and then we’ll reconsider, because by then you’ll know what working with me is like.

That’s the only context I’d ever offer introductory pricing. Because if you don’t put a limit on it, you get stuck. It’s really hard to go back to a client and say “okay, intro pricing’s over, now it’s double.” They’ll say, “Well, why now? Are you doing more work?” So you need a clear reason for the intro rate from the jump.

And honestly? If you have experience I didn’t have, you don’t have to offer introductory pricing at all. Just because you’re starting your own agency doesn’t mean you’re brand new. Maybe you’re just hanging your shingle and doing this on your own now.

In fact, here’s how I’d reframe it. When you’re on your own, your clients get direct access to you instead of going through a big agency with layers above and below you. They get your expertise, your magic, your secret sauce, directly. Your agency might be brand new, but your genius is not coming out of left field. If you’re running the show, your clients are lucky to get direct access to you. That’s valuable.

Create a solid contract before you actually need one

Do this before you ever get into a relationship with a client. You don’t want to scramble to create a contract after a client situation forces you to need one.

A contract protects you. It sets the rules of the relationship so everybody agrees on how things work: how and when you get paid, the scope of work, the choice of law. This is my area, obviously, as an attorney, so I know how valuable a solid contract is.

Inside my Agency Accelerator, we’ve created a contract template that we share. And I’ll always advise you (I’m not your lawyer, but…) run it by your own lawyer. A lot of those terms come from real-life situations that actually came up in my business, things we now protect ourselves and our members from, because they really happened.

If it’s not in the contract, it’s up to interpretation. A solid contract makes things crystal clear, so you don’t have to wonder. It also protects your intellectual property, which is your media contacts list. Clients don’t get access to that. It’s yours. It’s proprietary. You want that in place before you need it, not after you’re in a pickle.

Find your community early (this is not optional)

The first 10 years of running my business were lonely. So I’d find my community early. And I’ll say it plainly: this is not optional. Do not try to go it alone.

Running your business is hard in every aspect, even just understanding how people are pricing. Where do you fall on the pricing scale compared to other agencies of your size and level of expertise? When people come into my community and we get on calls, they are shocked at what other people are charging. I’ve had members providing services for a tenth of the going rate, and they had no idea other people were charging a premium retainer for that same level of service.

It’s amazing to be in a community where you’ve found your people. They understand what you’re going through, and you understand them, and you don’t feel so alone. Don’t try to go it alone. It’s lonely. And you don’t have to.

Build a personal brand alongside your agency brand

Build your personal brand right alongside your agency brand.

You can put out thought leadership. You’ll have your branded imagery, your website, your logo, your colors. You don’t have to go crazy on all of it, but it’s nice to have it out there as you grow so you can attract your ideal clients like a magnet.

When I started, I was kind of rebelling against my boring identity as a lawyer and my boring ecru business card with black type (so, so boring). I chose a logo and a brand identity that was whimsical and colorful, with this beautiful floral pattern. Very girly. I wanted to attract women-owned, female-centric brands, and that brand identity screamed it. It was a conversation starter. People were drawn to it.

Our brand has evolved several times since then (you’re around 21 years, you’re going to have some evolutions, am I right?). When you’re sharing your voice online, on LinkedIn, with a perspective and something you’re known for, you can command an even bigger premium retainer, because you’re positioning yourself as an authority and a thought leader. Your personal brand enhances the value of your agency brand.

What I’d skip entirely

Now for the stuff I’d ditch.

Don’t position yourself as a solopreneur. Even if it’s just you right now, you’re going to grow into a team. If you position yourself as a solopreneur, you’ll command solopreneur rates, like a freelancer. When you position yourself as an agency, even if it’s just you at the moment, you say, “We can support you. We’d love to help with this launch strategy.”

I started, and it was just me, but I built a team quickly (that’s another piece of advice: pull together a team as fast as you can, even before you feel ready, because they free up your time for high-leverage work and get you out of the day-to-day execution).

Now, one caveat. I never tried to look bigger than I was with fake team pages or fake assistant emails that all route back to me. You don’t want to be misleading. It’s hard to keep straight, and it feels deceptive, and we don’t do that. Be legit and honest right out of the gate. You can say “we can support you” because your actual plan is to bring on team as fast as possible, even if it’s a virtual assistant for a few hours to help with graphics or articles.

Stop saying yes to everything

Do not say yes to every opportunity out of a scarcity mindset. I cannot tell you how hard this is to unlearn. It’s that fear that this might be the only opportunity, or that you’re saying no to revenue you need. But what happens is you end up drained, headed in a direction you don’t want to go, closing the door on better-fit opportunities that might pay more and align better with your expertise.

We said yes to everything at first, and I quickly went down some dead-end paths. Like putting on a fashion show, which I did, and it was excellent and wonderful, but my God, that is not for me. The stress of a live event at that scale just wrecked me. The fashion world wasn’t my thing. I didn’t love tracking sizes and seasons and getting samples back to send to the next publication. It stressed me out.

So I moved away from fashion right out of the gate and leaned heavily into beauty and cosmetics (my absolute favorite) and the baby and kids industry. Those worked so well for me. It felt easy. Frictionless. But those few events? I feel like I aged 10 years.

And here’s the part people forget: I had to take those fashion showcase studies off my website. Because your case studies act like a magnet. If you want more great work like the work you excelled at, that case study attracts ideal clients who want the same results. I didn’t want more fashion shows, so down they came.

Don’t overinvest in expensive tools

Limit the expensive tools you probably don’t need yet, and the multiple tools that overlap or have a ton of bells and whistles you’re not ready for. Don’t overinvest in pricey platforms before you have enough clients or a team to justify it. It just becomes wasteful.

And it does not make you legit. I’ve had a lot of women come in and say, “I don’t have a media contacts database, so I’m not legit.” So we created one: a community-curated database of PR-friendly editors our members have worked with, editors who are supportive of the PR community and open to your pitches. There are thousands of contacts in there, podcasts, 20-plus niches. I built it because I wanted members to have that legitimacy without spending $8,000 a year on a platform when it’s just you, or you and one other person.

Do not overinvest before you’re ready. You might get stuck in a long contract and realize you never needed that platform in the first place.

Stop waiting until you feel ready

This one still plagues me, I’ll admit it. When there’s something new I want to do (a new coaching program, a new direction, a whole new something), I still wait for that “ready” feeling.

Readiness is a myth.

If I’d waited until I was ready and had everything figured out, I’d have been waiting forever. I lean into “leap, and the net will appear.” As you leap, you figure things out. You stay open to opportunities, and you interpret what comes your way (like the fashion show: do I want this? I learned that I didn’t, but I never would’ve known if I hadn’t actually done it).

If I’d had to write a whole business plan and feel quote-unquote ready before starting, I’d still be in my law office twiddling my thumbs 21 years later. Confidence and motivation come from taking action. So just get moving. As you build momentum, that’s where the “I’ve got this, I want to keep going” feeling comes from. That’s where you create the excitement and the passion. That’s where readiness actually shows up.

What I’d lean into harder

Now for the things I’d double down on.

Relationships are everything. Focus on your relationships over everything else. I never burn a bridge if I can help it. I never want to walk away from a relationship in a negative way. I give clients the benefit of the doubt. If there’s an issue, we have a discussion and find a solution that works for them, because even if it didn’t work out, I want them to go into the world saying they had a really good experience with Jen and Jeneration PR.

I treat editors the same way. I want to be easy to work with. Frictionless. I want our team to be the preferred publicist, the one an editor can come to knowing we’ll be quick, thorough, and we’ll never be the reason they miss a deadline. We help move their story across the finish line, even if it’s not our client. If I have a contact that’s useful for what an editor is working on, I’ll share it, even if it doesn’t personally benefit us.

Relationships are the whole game. And in the era of AI, robots don’t have relationships. People do. That’s going to be one of the things that differentiates you and your value as an agency owner.

Saying no is a skill

I’d feel more comfortable saying no, because I now realize saying no is a skill you have to develop. It comes with confidence. It comes with being certain about your values, so you know when something doesn’t align with your goals, your priorities, or the direction you’re going.

When you’re clear on all of that, saying no is easy, because every no lets you say yes to the things that matter most. So say no. Don’t apologize for it.

And I’ll tell you, the older I get, the more I give zero F’s. Saying no is one of those places where I’m just like, nope. Not doing it. I don’t even have to explain. “Thanks for thinking of me. No.”

Rest as a business strategy

Lean into rest as a business strategy, not as a reward for being productive enough. I used to feel guilty taking a break, even with babies. I’d tell myself I’d take a walk once I’d been productive enough.

For me, I love wandering around Home Goods or Target for an hour. It’s therapy. And now I have my dog, my little coworker, and I take her for a walk every single morning, first thing, for an hour. I get my steps in, fresh air, sunshine on my face, and it fuels my energy for the whole day.

I used to keep that thing in the back of my mind: should I go for my walk now? No, let me do one more thing. Now I start my day with a walk, and it’s been such a solid business strategy. Clear head, then I start my day. I’m way more focused and way more productive because of it. It’s not a reward I earn through productivity first. It’s just a thing I do for me. (Maybe I’ll throw on a weighted vest now and then, but I’m not out here doing hardcore CrossFit.)

Trust your instincts

I don’t hear enough people talking about this, certainly not enough men in business leadership. We all have instincts as human beings, and especially as women, we’re really good at reading people and reading a situation. And then we talk ourselves out of it.

I’d have learned to trust my instincts earlier instead of second-guessing everything. My instincts have never steered me wrong. They’ve been incredibly powerful as the leader of my agency, my communities, and my family.

I have a whole lesson in my program on red flags, and it comes from years of having an instinct and then talking myself out of it so I could move forward with a client I had better judgment about. And every single time I’ve ignored my instinct or those red flags, it has come back to bite me.

You know the ones. The way they treated you during the courting process. The way they ghosted you. Now you’re chasing down invoices. They begged for a discount, and now they’re second-guessing every single thing you do, and they’re paying you half of what your other clients pay. That initial gut response to a conversation or an interaction? Pay attention to it. Don’t second-guess it.

Enjoy the journey while it’s happening

It’s all a journey. Enjoy it while it’s happening instead of rushing to the next milestone.

I’ve always been goal-oriented. Do well in high school so I can get into a good college. Do well in college so I can get into a good grad school. Crush law school so I land at a great firm. Things are always moving. And I once heard a coach at a seminar say: “And you do the next, and the next, and the next, and then you die.”

Oof.

You’re constantly chasing the next thing instead of enjoying the process. And it’s a hollow existence. You’re always in achievement mode. That’s why we celebrate the smallest wins. You picked up the phone and called the web designer. You booked the photographer for your headshots. Celebrate that, especially if you’d been frozen on it for a while. You took the next step. That’s worth celebrating.

I cannot believe I’m 21 years into this. It’s insane to me. And I’ve paused and thought, wow, I’m so lucky I trusted my instinct way back when to leave law, bet on myself, and start my own business. I love it so much that I want to share everything I’ve learned along the way.

So: keep what’s working, ditch what isn’t, and lean into the stuff that matters more. Trust the process. Trust your instincts. Enjoy the journey while it’s happening. Don’t get so locked into the next, and the next, and the next.

Let’s do it together.

Now go out there and crush it this week. I’ll be over here doing the same.