Ruth Wilson (moderator):

Hi Emily,
It's been great to link up with you over the last two years - thanks for your support for the work of the UKRC.

I am aware that your public profile is fantastic. You are generous with your time, and the publicity has enabled you to say a lot about sustainability, inventors, inspiring young people and more.

But it comes at a cost: you have your studies, your work and a personal life. What have you learnt about managing publicity over the last few years?

Emily Cummins:

Hi Ruth,

In regards to your question, I can't say it has been easy, but it is something I have learnt to manage over time.

It was difficult at first to combine my full time university degree with my inventing, speaking and attending events, but all I needed to do was ask for some help. I firstly spoke to my personal tutor from Leeds University who suggested that I became a part-time student, allowing me to study two days a week, but extend my course for an extra year. Without asking for help, I would have never known that this opportunity was available! This was also a perfect way to combine my studies with all the work I am extremely passionate about outside of University.

I also have a habit of trying to cram as much into my day as possible, but I have found that this is not a great approach. This causes me to burn out and I also tend to spread myself too thinly over many projects, which is no good for anyone! What I tend to do now is create a list of 5 things I need to do each day, and make sure I do them. I also make priorities, but I make sure they included studying, my passions and also some down time. I tend to need some down time each week as this gives me time to think, be creative and reflect.

Danielle Ellis:

Hi Emily,

You said you would have liked to study engineering at University, but didn't do the right A-levels, could you tell me more about this?

Emily Cummins:

In regards to managing the publicity, this was completely new to me and something I wasn't really prepared for.

I never really expected to gain the publicity, and it never was my aim to gain it, but I saw it positively in regards to spreading the word about my products to as many people as possible. This way I hoped that more people could have access to instructions for how to create their own fridges for example.

I also saw it positively in regards to sharing my story with young people. I hope to inspire other young people, and show them that it doesn’t matter about age and if you have an idea then just have a go at creating it. The publicity has therefore also given me the opportunity to speak at many events and reach and meet many young people.

However, there was a time when I received some negative publicity and this really upset me. All I had wanted to do was create products, which would help improve the quality of people’s lives and would create jobs. Yet sometimes people would find fault with that. What I would tend to do would be to focus on the one piece of negative publicity or a comment that someone would make, and not even consider the 300 positive comments that I might get at the same time. The problem was my mindset and that is something I have worked on changing. I now see that the publicity gives me the opportunity to reach as many people as possible. Whether that is to the share my ideas, or to work with young people in finding their talents and passions.

I must say that I sometimes I have to pinch myself just to make sure it is real....I have had people contact me from all over the world as a result of the publicity. One little girl in Alaska even did her school project on me! It really is amazing just how far a story can travel!

Emily Cummins:

Hi Danielle,

When I was choosing my A Levels, I wasn’t sure what I wanted to study and I had no idea what I wanted to do in the future. Therefore, I was advised to select the options that either I most enjoyed or I received my best grades in at GCSE.

I ended up studying Product Design, Business Studies, Biology, Psychology and General Studies at A Level. When it came to the time that I was applying to university, the problem was, when looking at the courses and the requirements needed to study them, I didn’t have the right A Levels to study Engineering. I also thought that I wasn’t very good at drawing, so I assumed that I couldn’t be a product designer.

I decided that I would therefore study Business and take electives in Sustainability so I could have more of an idea on how to take my ideas from a product and turn them into a business. The University of Leeds also enabled me to use the Engineering Facilities if I wished to work on my projects, so I got the best of both worlds. Whether that was the right or wrong thing, I am not sure, but it doesn’t seem to have had a huge impact on the work that I am currently undertaking.

I think the problem is careers advise. The students that I meet often have a limited idea about the jobs that they can do in the future, and many don’t know about the choices they need to make to get there. If we take an Engineering course for example, the term itself is very broad, and it confuses many young people. Students each have their own perception/ stereotype of what an engineer does. Yet to study Engineering at University, the requirements for A Level are nearly as specific as those to be a Doctor or a Vet. Yet young people tend to know exactly what a Doctor or a Vet does at a young age and if they choose to take a career in either of those industries, they have often decided before their GCSEs. However, if like me, you don’t know exactly what you want to do until you have been studying your chosen A Levels, and then you decide you might want to be an Engineer, without the right selection A Levels, you can’t.

However, considering my 5 A Level choices, I could have studied Business, Product Design, Biology or Psychology at University because these courses often go on points and not by the combination of A Levels that I chose. I really believe that this is stopping many of our young people studying Engineering at University. Although better careers advise could alleviate this.

Angela :

Hi Emily,

Congratulations on all your achievements, it is inspirational to see young people bypass the constraints of the existing system.

I would be very keen to hear how, once you had designed your fridge, you took the initial steps to give it the publicity it needed and then from there how you jumped into the public eye.

My perception is that there are lots of interesting SETs out there but they perhaps lack the know-how of promotion.

Emily:

Hi Angela,

The initial steps that I took to give my products the publicity was through competitions. There are numerous competitions for design/engineering projects and these really help to get coverage. For the younger inventors, Audi Young Designer of the Year and Young Engineers for Britain are key competitions and there are numerous regional competitions as well. After leaving school I took part in the BFIIN competition which is for women, however there are other ones which aren’t specifically for women.

Through the competitions you can gain media coverage and this can result in publicity for both the product and the inventor. This then creates the stage for further promotion, such as radio interviews, magazines etc, increasing the coverage. I also attended many networking events and eventually had the opportunity to speak at the events. After the first stint of publicity, it appeared that one opportunity led to another as long as I kept the momentum going and didn’t turn down events/opportunities that I believed to be valuable.

Amber:

Hi Emily,

I was wondering how you got your inventions in the public eye? Was this difficult?

gill rooker:

Hi Emily

Your story is inspiring. I'd love to know what toys you used to make with your grandad and what scrap materials you used (I tried to make a pinnochio puppet out of clay as a child!) And where would you like to travel?

Gill

Helen Collier:

Hi Emily

I saw you get an award at an event at Magna (I think) in Sth Yorkshire quite a few years ago. It would have been before you went to university because I remember you were just going to do a business degree - I remember at the time thinking why do a business degree - why not engineering?
Your blog tells me why. Can you recall who actually gave you the advice - was it a teacher, or a careers advisor or someone else and how much did they know about you?

Helen

Emily Cummins:

Hi Amber,

It wasn't very difficult for me to get my inventions in the public eye becuase I entered competitions. I truely beleive that competitions are a great way to promote yourself as the inventor and the product. However, to get the best publicity you really need to win the competitions, so that is all about the presentation you give, the research and the product. The product is key really.

Hope that helps.
Emily

Emily Cummins:

Hi Gill,

I used to make toy trucks, rounders sets, little wooden boxes to keep my treasure in, the list goes on.

I would love to go back and travel around Southern Africa, especially Namibia, which is my favourite.

Emily Cummins:

Hi Helen,

By the time I had chosen my A Levels, it was too late to study Engineering. I picked the A Levels that I did because I took the general advice given to all students, 'if you don't know what you want to do in the future, pick the subjects that you did the best in at GCSE and those you enjoy'. I did have some careers advice at school but I remember it being very poor. The jobs were generated by a computer based on interests and skills. I don't recall being very inspired by the jobs, which didn't really give me anything to aim for.

Caroline:

Hi Emily, I've heard that you will be on the debating panel of the UKRC National Conference on 12th October at the Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre. The conference looks amazing with fantastic keynotes like Robert Winston and Aleks Krotoski. Its going to be a great day and best still is that its only cost me £150 which for conferences these days is just great given the line-up. I am looking forward to seeing your there and participating in the debate and taking from the day some great shared knowledge. Are you looking forward to it too? It might be helpful for you to mention to your bloggers where they can book their place?

Colin:

Hi Emily,

Your journey is very inspiring. I wondered what your future career aspirations are? Would you like to continue inventing products?

Thanks Colin