Week 6 and 7 I got free Yahhooo. Bring a Monday without plans. Janine, my supervisor, texted me on the night of March 25 and explained that I could take time off the next day because she had a meeting very early and the music department couldn`t have me on their team due to other commitments; This meant that I was back in the PR department, a department with which I had spent several weeks and from which I had learned a lot. So Janine thought it would be logical to miss this week because I wouldn`t miss much and I would continue to do the lessons even if I missed two weeks in a row because Easter weekend was the following weekend. After Janine returned from their meeting, we ventured to the reception of Foxtel, where the director of Sky News met me. We had a coffee and hot chocolate along the way to calm my nerves and give me some energy for the day, because Mondays are always hard, right? I always seemed to have a case of Montagitis. To my relief, the lady from Sky News – Sarah was absolutely lovely and very welcoming. When I was introduced to all the younger, older and aspiring journalists, they were all so accommodating and the big TVs, the live red buttons and the journalists got me excited. The office was amazing and everything I had imagined. These people were responsible for educating the public and bringing serious problems and events to life. I wanted to be part of it and for today, I was part of it. It was cool to see that they were as humanitarian-focused as I was. Checking the to-do list.
I received my own email from Sky News, my notepad and my Sky News diary. I was officially part of the team. My last assignment of the day was to write PR pitches for potential story ideas for journalists. These presentations included a potential interview with a Sky News political editor about the upcoming budget and local and online exposure for a potential interview with Sky News presenters about their work-life balance as mothers, professionals and wives. I emailed mybodyandsoul to find work-life balance without compromising wellness, in their women`s health tab and in Beast magazine, about technology and the need to be constantly on 24:7 and, in turn, how to manage that angle in their technology tab to customize the pitch for each post. My supervisor told me to be individualized, to the point where journalists have a busy schedule and are humanized with the point of view since everyone likes a human point of view, right? A motto I will never forget. On October 12, 2018, fifth semester students and seventh semester class representatives were guided by how court journals should be created. The conference was well attended by about 500+ students. The students were guided by the presentation of agricultural dairies, where they had to report on the legal proceedings they had witnessed during their summer internships. My experiment was over. 10 weeks of fun, new friends, new skills and new challenges were finally over.
I had done my first internship. When I walked out of the doors of Foxtel, I felt a number of emotions, I was happy to challenge myself and confront myself to step out of my comfort zone in a world I didn`t know, but I was sad to leave the place that had become my workplace for the last 10 weeks. and my colleagues, who had become friends. There were tears, fear, happiness and excitement during this trip, but I wouldn`t have changed anything. The connections I made, the advice I was given and the skills I learned will never leave me and will certainly shape my future career. I can`t wait to make a name for myself in the big world, and I know this experience has helped me get there. Special thanks to my mentor, heroine and supervisor Janine, I couldn`t have done it without you. I will miss our conversations with girls and our long car rides. Let`s introduce Stage 2, which I`m sure will bring a lot more challenges, laughter, memories and knowledge and bring me one step closer to my dream career path.
Proudly, I went to the café for lunch. I was given a croissant and fruit salad and sat alone for 15 minutes while quickly mocking my food. I checked my emails and observed all the company people around me. I felt a little out of place and I thought, wow, could that be me. And will I be? I hope I`ll make friends in the coming weeks so I don`t look like a complete loner. In fact, it reminded me of my return to high school. I was done for the day. I said goodbye to the PR team, which was sad because I was able to make strong connections, but I was excited about what a new department could bring me next week. I added them all on LinkedIn, hoping they would be connections that could help me get my foot in the door one day. They also gave me a professional USB drive with all previous press releases which was super nice and accommodating. To start my day, I listened to a meeting with the entire lifestyle team. It was my second day in the department of Foxtel.
As soon as I walked into the room, I met Hannah, the “digital director,” which was great but intimidating. She seemed kind, but very focused and determined to succeed. The meeting discussed the company`s digital performance last year. Documentation of click-through rates, engagement levels, new revised strategies for the next fiscal year and for each pillar, e.g. Food, lifestyle, house, etc. and the number of unique visitors to the site. Each team member would discuss their area of expertise, such as social, marketing and editorial. As I mentioned in other newspaper articles, these meetings were super confrontational and sometimes absolute gibberish, but by listening to people with strong knowledge and skills, I was able to keep dreaming and learning their ways of thinking and leading.
My day was over in Nachrichtenland. It was a great day, but it was definitely worth it for all the skills and relationships I built. To say that I worked at Sky News is a privilege and has definitely made my motivation to work in news clearer.