Meet Ruth Furman

We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Ruth Furman a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Ruth , we’re thrilled to have you sharing your thoughts and lessons with our community. So, for folks who are at a stage in their life or career where they are trying to be more resilient, can you share where you get your resilience from?

I get my resilience from my mom, who faced so many challenges throughout her life and prevailed! My mom, Sally, was relentlessly positive and patient, creative and joyful. Following my mom’s example, I learned “it’s not necessary but it’s possible” and “if you can, you should.” While I have always said that resourcefulness and joy are my superpowers, I never thought of myself as resilient until my mom was diagnosed with lung cancer in 2023. . In the years since, I truly became more resilient, both in my personal life and at work.

Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?

ImageWords Communications is my public relations consultancy, based in Nevada and operating nationwide. I started my business in 2001 as a writer and publicist supporting larger agencies , evolving over the years as a marketing consultant with my own direct clients. New in 2026 is a shift toward supporting a smaller number of recurring clients and more frequent project work that fuels me and helps me curate joy in my life and at work. I’ve been told I am a little bit of a “public relations unicorn” because I operate with a journalist’s mindset, yet deliver like a marketing consultancy. I even get referrals from digital marketers. I take pride in the fact that I remain relevant and evolve not just what’s trending, but also what works! That’s how I developed my approach to connecting my clients with digital assets that aid both AI search and traditional search engine optimization.

There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?

I consider the audience in everything I do. When I am working with journalists, I think about what I can do to help them shine to their boss. With clients, I ask about what’s profitable for them and also what their customers need to know about their businesses. Another strength, which I used to consider a weakness, is that I am a bit of a “catastrophizer.” I anticipate what could go wrong before there’s even a glimmer of it happening. That’s why I always have a plan b in most scenarios. It’s saved me many times. Mostly, I have learned that in all things, life and work is a “numbers game.” These days when I help those I mentor relationship build during job searches, I push hard to make asks earlier and more frequently in a variety of ways.

Awesome, really appreciate you opening up with us today and before we close maybe you can share a book recommendation with us. Has there been a book that’s been impactful in your growth and development?

The Beautiful NO And Other Tales of Trial, Transcendence, and Transformation by Sheri Salata taught me so many lessons and gave me courage to recognize that every “no” we encounter is beautiful and leading us toward the next greatest thing. I learned through this book that “the stories I tell myself” matter more than anything. Reading and re-reading The Beautiful No made me more resilient and lightened my energy, which can get unbearable heavy in a nanosecond when hardships come my way at work. Chaos is inevitable in my business. So is losing opportunities. Freedom in the process and personal sovereignty is a choice.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://ruthfurman.com
• Instagram: ruthiefurman
• Facebook: imagewords
• Linkedin: Ruth Furman
• Twitter: imagewords

Image Credits

Taylored Photo