Mentorship In Action: How Sarah Busby Is Shaping The Next Generation Of PR Pros
In an industry built on amplifying stories, Sarah Busby has spent the last 10 years making sure others are heard and helping those that are just getting started to get experience.
As the founder of B the Buzz Agency, a Black woman-owned PR firm rooted in Atlanta, Sarah has carved out a legacy of visibility, not just for brands, but for people. Her agency has helped small businesses and creatives rise to the spotlight, but what sets her apart is how she’s poured into young professionals behind the scenes. Through her mentorship program, Sarah is helping shape the next generation of publicists and entrepreneurs.
As she celebrates a decade of success, she’s launched her new DIY PR guide, The Buzz Builder to empower professionals who may want to do their own PR without hiring an agency. Sarah reflects on what mentorship has taught her, how the creative landscape in Atlanta is a catalyst for opportunity, and why giving back is more than just a passion: it’s a responsibility.
Her Agenda: You’ve mentored dozens of young creatives, what’s something you learned from your interns that changed the way you lead or work?
Sarah Busby: One of the things that was always exciting and interesting about working with those that were younger than me and those that I mentored is that they had just a different level of energy and creativity than I had at their age. So that inspired me to want to help them more. [It was] that type of relationship that made me say, I want you guys to be inclusive in this process. So my leadership style is simply, I don’t care if you’re an intern, I don’t care if you’re an assistant or a volunteer, I want to get that feedback.
When you’re young and you’re learning, there’s this concept that you’re the help or [just] somebody to do busy work. And that is not the right leadership style. The leadership style is to really find out what their skillsets and gifts [are]. Because what you’ll learn is that, some of my interns, they had such great creativity in design and event management, which is a great skill part of PR. But I noticed I had other interns that were great at writing. So once you really learn and you start to incorporate that environment, you will start to really learn what are their strengths and what are their weaknesses. And I think that’s important.
Her Agenda: When you look back at the industry 10 years ago versus now, what do you think your younger self would be most proud of and what might she still challenge you on?
Sarah Busby: My younger self would be proud of and surprised that people took me seriously [enough] to pay me to be a client. I had no idea what entrepreneurship was to that capacity. So if I had a glimpse [from then] to now, I would have never believed that.
My younger self if she was here, she would challenge me to take a little bit more risk and not second guess my first thoughts. Because I’m older, I’m more strategic, [I] have a little more analytical approach to things, so I can overthink myself. And so my younger self was like the first thought that came up, I’m going to do it. It’s like I had that energy, I had that tenacity, like there was nothing too hard. And now I’m like, I’m analyzing everything. I’m analyzing risk. And so if she was here, she would challenge me to say, “Why haven’t you done this already? You need to do this.” And that right there is what I’m kind of looking forward to doing more in my next 10 years. Bringing a little bit of that youth back in, but also just always using wisdom.
Her Agenda: PR is about amplifying other people’s stories. Has mentorship taught you anything about your own voice and how or when to use it?
Sarah Busby: Mentorship has taught me you have to be confident. That was something that I learned in my journey [because] I wasn’t as confident as I needed to be. And that is a major skill that you have to have in business. When I was mentored by those that were [in the] industry longer than me, I was always like, you think this is good? And it’s so crazy [because] I was actually doing good, but I just hadn’t settled with that. Like, I thought I needed to do better. I needed to do more. Looking at past mentors I’ve learned that you got to be bold in this and PR, you got to be confident.
So I’m learning every client teaches me, every project teaches me. And something that I do [to those I teach] or I talk to that are in entrepreneurship when they’re asking questions, is you got to be very direct. You got to be upfront because that’ll cost you in the long run if you’re not. So that comes with bold[ness] and confidence.
Her Agenda: Atlanta is full of creative energy and hustle. What makes mentorship hit differently in this city and why do you think it’s so critical to building sustainable careers here?
Sarah Busby: What I love about Atlanta is that we have accessible opportunities. Somebody knows somebody that can connect you. If you show up and you speak up, there’s a lot of opportunities for startups and entrepreneurs. I think that if you want to learn and you want to be in the loop, you really just have to just show up. That’s how you can really get the assistance that you need. [But] it depends on who you connect yourself with. If you have a desire to be mentored, back to my other points is you gotta be bold and you gotta be confident.
And a lot of people that don’t mind [being] mentored are those that actually say, Hey, I want to do this. I’m interested in this. What would be some of your suggestions or steps or ideas, or are you taking mentees or do you have a mentorship [program]? That’s what I’ve seen a lot here is that people really are hungry for opportunity. And that’s where we see this hustle culture [here] because people [know] the opportunities are here.
Her Agenda: For many Gen Z interns, “success” looks different than it did a decade ago. How are you helping them define success on their own terms and not just by industry standards?
Sarah Busby: PR is so fast paced and it’s a service-based business. If you are doing this for like, “I want to be famous. I want to be known,” it’s great to have these aspirations, but I also want you to make sure that you don’t forget your why. Like, don’t get into it because of the fame and the lights and your name and stuff like that. I want them to really learn and find their passion. And that’s [why] with mentorship,you can’t just throw a book at them. You can’t just throw them an agenda. You’ve got to learn them. You’ve got to hear them. And once you learn and hear them, then you could begin to place them in areas where they’ll thrive.
The goal of mentorship is to obviously be a leader, but be a leader and create an environment where your team thrives, not just for the moment, [but] long lasting to where they can take these skillsets or anything that you learn. I don’t care if it was just like a moment of wisdom, right? Like you’re just sitting, you’re talking to me, you’re venting to me. I want to know what’s going on in your life. Like your cat is walking all in these interviews, these meetings, like what’s your cat’s name? Because that lets them know that I care about them. And if you have a team that knows that you care about them, they’ll show up for you in more ways than just work.
Her Agenda: You’ve helped students land jobs, fellowships, and leadership roles. Is there a success story that sticks with you and reminds you why this work matters?
Sarah Busby: The goal of any type of internship or mentorship is to see where they go next. One in particular, [a mentee] told me her goal was to go to DC and to work at an agency in DC. And to know she landed that job in DC at an agency was amazing.
At the end of the day, every class teaches me. And so I’m always trying to tweak my program and to know those portfolios, those examples, those events, and of course, schooling, right? [But] that helped her get that internship [and] to know that she got that job in a huge market in our industry was major for me. And I have another student [from] that same class that went on to a fellowship and from that, it was a paid fellowship.
And again, that is a goal, right? I would say those are some defining moments for me and I still catch up with them and they’re thriving in their careers.
