Every employer from sea to sea wants to know the same things about potential hires. “How are his communication skills? Is she a team player? “Do they possess the tenacity to take a project from conception to completion?”
And every job interviewer has a lineup of graduates assuring them that they can talk the talk, walk the walk and above all else, get stuff done.
But talk is cheap.
So regardless of major, how can you stand above the heap and PROVE to your dream company’s hiring manager that you are more than another set of hollow promises?
The secret…NEWS WRITING.
When a decision-maker receives your college resume and sees that you were a reporter or columnist, they have proof that you can communicate effectively, independently contribute to a team vision and turn nothing into something.
Not buying it? Here’s my proof to you.
Employers want to know that your communication skills are up to par. As a reporter, these skills are constantly being tested and refined.
Before a story is released, team members brainstorm and argue the pros and cons of covering a particular issue. These office parleys exercise one’s ability to cooperate and contribute as an independent voice of the company.
But in the context of your future career, interviewing source subjects is perhaps the most advantageous reporting practice. The interview process includes source research, cold-calling, relationship preservation and improvisation.
Most importantly, it tests one’s ability to ask the right questions. Once preliminary decisions have been made and interviews are conducted, the writing process begins.
And there is no better way to convey personal diligence to a potential employer than taking a roomful of jumbled ideas and turning them into a focused, profitable product.
The ability to produce something of value is the best weapon to have when taking on the hiring process.
Whether they are made of brick and mortar, dollar signs, words or melodies, end products make the world go-round. Engineers take vacant spaces and turn them into buildings.
Businessmen take empty pockets and turn them into expense accounts
Reporters take blank pages and turn them into persuasive, informative and entertaining narratives.
When you square up with a hiring manager and divulge your participation in the weekly production of an influential product, you instill a belief that you can play a vital role in their company’s endgame.
Pivotal employees are exceptional teammates, and there is no place like a newsroom to foster an individual’s collaboration skills. Editors, columnists and reporters of all majors cooperate on a daily basis to complete a quality product.
Resources and connections are shared, broadening the network of the whole staff.
When a deadline is on the horizon, opinion columnists dive into feature stories and sports reporters write entertainment reviews. The malleability required to work in a newsroom prepares you to be an adaptable team member, no matter the industry. The interview process for internships and first jobs do not have to be nerve-wracking shots in the dark.
You know what recruiters and hiring managers want, and now, you can take the steps to give it to them.
Become a news writer and saunter into your first interview with the swagger of a smooth-talking, team player, who gets stuff done.
