HOW TO PREPARE YOURSELF FOR A SUCCESSFUL MEDIA PROFESSION?

In the last 30 years of my media education career, several students were curious to know how one could prepare for entering the bubbling, happening and dynamic media industry. I always told them my story. A story that was full of occasions where media had become a part of my life since I was in school.

START FROM YOUR SCHOOL 

The best place to start is your school, if its primary all the better. But How? By being in forefront of dramatics, on stage, during ‘teacher’s day’ and ‘children’s day celebrations’, during those ‘One Act Play’ contests, or participating in debates & elocutions..and of course by writing for your school newspaper. This is the first journey for all budding journalists and media and creative professionals. The best learning lessons are those that you get during the first fumbles of debates & elocutions, the dialogues you forget on stage and improvise, and those endless writing & re-writing for the school newspapers as the rookie campus reporter. It hones you to learn that practice, practice, practice until you are successful.

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LOOK FOR LOCAL RESOURCES, LOCAL PLATFORMS

While at school or college, any student who has storytelling in his bones, or has fire to create something out of box, or loves to participate in local theatre, your journey has already begun. This is the phase where you need to also look out for local resources and support. It can be a local theatre group where you not only can do a small role, but should also get your hands dirty in handling the production like the stage set up, lighting, the properties, the cast and other crew and sweat it out till you hear that deafening , resounding applause from the audience. The sweat and the applause will take you a long way in understanding the nitty gritty of shoots and production process in television & film media.

BE A PASSIONATE READER

Reading is a habit that you need to catch on early in life. While in school, start with comics and mythological comics like Amar Chitra Katha. These not only develop your reading skills but also teach you about storyboarding, storytelling, art and creativity. After that you should gorge on anything that you get your hands on, be it English paperbacks, or Hindi classics, make sure to read at least one set of books every summer vacation. This may continue later if you develop a habit to read one book a month. Gradually as you grow older, you will also pick a newspaper or magazine to read which will take you to the first step in the ladder of your media career.Reading has many advantages. Firstly you language improves. You vocabulary gets richer. Secondly, you learn from the masters who liven up your treasure trove of experiences and you learn about interesting destinations, amazing cultures and gain knowledge about many concepts and theories in life. Hence, reading definitely can strengthen your base before entering media where your writing plays a major role as a journalist, reporter, producer, sub editor, director, copy writer, anchor and so on and so forth.

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BE RESOURCEFUL, GO GETTER AND STREET SMART

Although it is not an inborn talent, still one needs to be tactful, sharp minded, alert at all times, and resourceful. These qualities are helpful in making one a good media professional and grow faster. To be resourceful & street smart, one needs to take initiative in doing things either in school or college or try to be helpful during family events. It is a tip for all youngsters who aspire to get into fields like Public Relations, Event management and Production, that the best place to learn these tricks of trade is to lend an extra hand during a family wedding or an anniversary celebration. I always say that a media event is like that ‘ wedding’ where disaster is waiting to happen, and disaster management is taught by being in the midst of it. So all media aficionados should go ahead and be a part of family events and learn the basics of management. It not only prepares you for the future but also helps you be ahead of the lazy & non-starters you might meet in your media careers!

Looking at all above points, its easy to surmise that if you have inculcated these habits from a very young age and have been an all rounder, you may well end up in the media industry, be it print, television, radio, cinema, advertising, events or media management!

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