When Mandy Facer arrived at college, she didn’t have a five-year plan. She didn’t know exactly what she wanted to study. She didn’t know what industry she would work in. She didn’t even know what her first job might look like. What she did know was that she loved writing.
For students who feel pressure to have every detail of their future mapped out, Facer’s story offers a different perspective. Looking back, she realizes that certainty wasn’t what moved her forward. Curiosity was.
Rather than chasing a specific job title, she followed the work that energized her. That decision eventually led her to communications, a field that allowed her to combine storytelling, creativity, strategy, and connection.
What felt like uncertainty at the time would ultimately become an advantage.
An unexpected opportunity
One of the most important moments in Facer’s career began with what she believed was a failed interview. A teaching assistant encouraged her to apply for an editor position at the student newspaper. She wasn’t sure she was qualified, but she applied anyway. But, the job wasn’t in the bag.
She walked away convinced she hadn’t gotten the position, and then the editor called with a job offer. Facer laughs as she still questions how she got that opportunity today, and the experience taught her an important lesson: growth rarely feels comfortable. The very interview she viewed as a failure became the opportunity that launched her career.
Building strong relationships
That job gave Facer newsroom experience. More importantly, it introduced her to mentors who would fundamentally shape the way she approached work. For three years, she worked under an editor named Warren, who challenged her to raise her standards and pay attention to details others overlooked.
Years later, Facer no longer remembers that experience as a difficult interview or a demanding editor. She remembers it as the first time someone challenged her to operate at a level she didn’t yet know she was capable of reaching. Warren wasn’t simply teaching journalism. He was teaching excellence.
The lesson stayed with her long after graduation and surfaced again in her first professional role, where another mentor took the time to expand her understanding of strategy, audiences, and marketing. While working as a content writer, Facer’s manager routinely stayed after work to share knowledge that accelerated her growth and broadened her view of what a communications career could become.
“Every day after work, we’d clock out at five, and he would sit there and whiteboard for me how to do marketing strategies, how to understand audiences, how to build out segments,” Facer said. “He just poured all of this knowledge into me.”
Those experiences helped shape a belief she carries today: success is rarely a solo endeavor. Behind most successful careers are people who took the time to teach, challenge, encourage, and invest in someone else’s growth.
Using stories to create opportunity
Today, Facer serves as Director of Journalism and Digital Strategy at Lumina Foundation, where she helps tell stories that influence conversations around education, workforce development, and opportunity. The role draws on nearly every skill she has developed throughout her career, from journalism and communications to marketing and digital strategy. But what excites her most isn’t the title—it’s the impact.
For Facer, storytelling is about communication, but it’s also about helping people see possibilities for themselves.
The real soft skills
People often assume successful communicators are exceptional writers or public speakers. Facer believes the most important skill is something else entirely.
It’s a lesson that applies far beyond communications. Whether you’re building relationships, exploring careers, or leading teams, understanding people starts with listening.
A career still being written
Outside of work, Facer is pursuing a Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing at Butler University and continues to write poetry. In many ways, she has come full circle: The student who arrived at college knowing only that she wanted to write has built an entire career around the power of stories.
Looking back, Facer doesn’t see a perfectly planned journey. She sees a series of opportunities, mentors, and moments that helped her grow into a career she couldn’t have imagined when she first stepped onto a college campus. Today, she continues to give back by mentoring former team members and colleagues, connecting them to opportunities and advising them to follow their own paths.
“I believe the biggest thank you I can give to the people who have invested so much in me is to open new doors for the people I am lucky enough to meet and work with,” says Facer.
For students wondering whether they have everything figured out, that’s exactly the point. You don’t have to. Sometimes all you need is the courage to follow what interests you and the willingness to say yes before you feel completely ready.
