Agency Edit: Taking the Leap into Business Ownership
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In the first half of 2026, U.S. employers announced more than 440,000 job cuts — the second-highest total since 2020. Marketing and comms teams often feel it first. So what happens when the safety net of a full-time job disappears?
In this Agency Edit episode, Stephanie sits down with Jill Lawrence Vaughan, APR founder and CEO of JLV Communications, who spent over a decade as communications director for the Virginia Lottery (and was a two-time PRSA Silver Anvil winner) before an unexpected layoff pushed her into freelancing — and eventually building her own award-winning agency.
Skip the LLC-and-website basics. This conversation goes straight to what actually determines whether you make it as an independent practitioner: mindset. Jill and Stephanie talk through the shift from scarcity to abundance thinking, how to stay grounded when self-doubt creeps in, why your identity shouldn't live inside your job title, and how the people around you — personal and professional — shape your success. Jill also shares the story behind hiring her first full-time employee, what she looks for when bringing people onto her team, and her best advice for anyone considering the leap: get good at business, not just your craft.
Topics covered:
Jill's path from boutique beauty PR to state government comms to agency owner
Reframing a layoff as a turning point, not a setback
Building an abundance mindset (and staying out of scarcity thinking)
Why your job title isn't your identity
The power of community and network in PR/comms (PRSA Richmond)
Hiring your first team members and what to look for
Connect with Jill Vaughan:
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/jilll1/
Company: www.linkedin.com/company/jlv-communications-llc/ | jlvcoms.net
Connect with Stephanie / Spry PR:
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/stephanieapryor/
Show Notes:
The CFO Circle: https://go.sumofallnumbers.com/the-cfo-circle-michelle
PRSA Independent Practitioners Alliance: https://www.prsa.org/home/get-involved/professional-interest-sections/independent-practitioners-alliance-section
The Proximity Principle: https://www.amazon.com/Proximity-Principle-Proven-Strategy-Career/dp/0978562038
Who Not How: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/who-not-how-dan-sullivan/1136703973
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