By Amanda Weber -

Libby Catalinich (BA, ’82) sat down with a group of undergrads on May 16 to speak with them on what she’s learned about creating a successful career in communications over the past 30 years. Currently the director of corporate communications for REI, Catalinich couldn’t stress enough to the students how important internships are for the future of their careers.

“Seek them out. Develop portfolios,” she said. While she was an undergrad at the UW, Catalinich worked in five internships: she worked for the Seattle SuperSonics, she was a Marketing & Communications intern, she worked with Columbia Pictures, the Seattle Opera and Burlington Northern Railroad. With all of these internships, Catalinich said she was able to build up a portfolio which helped her get the jobs she wanted after graduation.

Early in her career, she quickly learned what kind of job was right for her, and journalism definitely wasn’t her cup of tea. After that job experience, Catalinich moved into public relations which ended up being a better fit for her personality and talents. “Do what you love,” she said, because if you aren’t doing what you enjoy, you won’t be contributing to the positive environment of your workplace.

And that environment is also something you need to pay attention to, even before you get the job, said Catalinich. “Every company has a culture – pay attention to that.” If the company does business or operates in a way that you may not agree with, you will have a hard time doing your job and feeling good about it.

This is also a lesson Catalinich learned on the job. Once she was asked to lie to a reporter (which she refused to do). When she was working as the senior vice president of public relations for Washington Mutual in the last few years of its existence, she had a hard time standing by her company after all the trouble big banks had caused in the economy. “Do your homework on the organizations you join,” she said. “There’s nothing worse than trying to defend the indefensible.”

Despite the hard lessons, they all build up to help create the successful worker that one sets out to become. Here are other tips Catalinich passed on to our students:

• “Find the learning and positive aspect of anything you’re going through.”
• When planning events, you have a “duty of care” when it comes to your guests. Make sure they are comfortable and well fed so they can focus on your message.
• When you’re an undergrad, don’t study too hard. Without slacking, you need to enjoy your time in college. Take your time and make memories that consist of more than just cramming all night before a test.
• Learn how to speak comfortably in front of a group of people. “One of the best classes I took here was public speaking.”
• Be prepared to work hard. “There’s always more work than you and your colleagues will be able to get to.”