Ask The Doctor With Sandeep Goyal
Are you a young professional looking for some expert advice? exchange4media will find you first-hand solutions from Sandeep Goyal, Vice Chairman of The Mogae Group
I want to join a news channel but I have no experience. I am currently doing a Masters in Media & Communication from a not-so-famous college in Mumbai. No news channel comes to our campus for placements. Please help.
Kavita K.
Dear Kavita,
You have not told me what is it that you would like to do in the news channel. Do you want to become a reporter? An editor? Be behind the camera?
Have you gone and met any of the news channels? Have you interned at a news channel?
Honestly, without full information, giving advice could sometimes be erroneous.
I am taking one scenario. That you want to be a news reporter. And you have neither interned at a news channel, nor have you approached one so far.
The starting point is to list out all the news channels you would like to apply to. You will need to choose between English and local language. You will also need to choose between Business and General News if you are opting to be in English.
I suggest you use some friends and basic equipment to shoot a video CV of yourself. Also shoot short videos as mock reports to submit to the channel. Concentrate on your facial expressions, your voice modulation and your pronunciation. Make sure you have good camera presence.
Once you are done, you will need to start making the rounds of the news channels of your choice. This needs to be done both electronically, and physically. You need to mail these CVs and mock reports to the HR department, and to the editor, of the news channel. But frankly, it is the physical visits to these channels that may actually work better. You will need to persevere to get interviews and meetings with the right and relevant people in the channel. In a way, this is batting practice for being a news reporter … the ability to get to meet the right people to get your job done.
News channels do hire rookies. Mostly not so well paid. With long hours and lots of hard work. But if you come across as a good candidate with the right attitude, you can get hired.
If you are looking to join a vernacular channel, good command over the local language will be very attractive to them.
One good tip: channels are always looking for stringers in smaller locations. If you are amenable to be located in a smaller town outside of Mumbai, chances of getting hired are better.
I have been in advertising and media for 20 years now. But I am extremely bored of my job. Everything is so repetitive. Clients are needlessly demanding and unforgiving. Colleagues are so superficial. The business itself has lost its lustre. Salaries too are poor in comparison to other professions.
My problem also is that I have acquired no new skill sets over the years. I don’t read much. I have some interest in music. That is all. And yes, I forgot to mention that I am in client servicing, though I started copywriting initially many years ago.
I want to start a new chapter in my life.
Prabhakar P. S.
Prabhakar,
I think your first battle is the battle of the mind.
Look at life with a little more cheer and hope. Nothing can be so dark and hopeless. I have been in advertising for more than 30 years. Clients have always been demanding and unforgiving. You can also have uncharitable views about your colleagues. But advertising in itself is a fairly fun business, provided you want to enjoy it.
You have yourself stated that you are not much into reading and don’t seem to have too many interests outside of work. That is perhaps the core of the problem that you have. Advertising has changed and evolved over the years. To keep abreast of changes and new opportunities in the business, the least you have to do is to start reading up both about advertising as well as about digital and about brands. Expanding your knowledge and exposure is necessary in every business, more so in advertising. In these very columns I have advised joining Coursera courses to expand horizons. And improve skill sets. Also develop newer interests. Art? A young colleague of mine developed this as a new interest. He starting writing a column for a newspaper on Art and one day actually moved to join an auction house. He is very happy in his new assignment. You could also look at newer areas of interest. Sometimes these could become triggers for newer career opportunities.
Also look to change your job. Either within your own organization. Or outside. Change will do you wonders. Sometimes being in the same environment makes you morose and despondent. It helps to look at opportunities outside when your own assignment starts to become stale.
Take a piece of paper. Divide it into two parts: your strengths and your weaknesses. Write them down.
Repeat the process with writing down what you like (professionally) and what you don’t.
Then, honestly, put down gap areas where you lack. You may need to spend a lot of time on this self assessment and self evaluation. Your options will automatically suggest themselves to you. But as I said before, you will need to be honest with yourself.
Inevitably, make a good CV. Work hard at it.
Use LinkedIn to reach out to relevant people. Send them your CV. Try for personal meetings. Have patience.
Look at careers outside of advertising. Not easy. But do-able. But again such a shift would require positivity and a lot of aggression.
Join a class. Acting? Dancing? Singing? Painting? But do it just to meet more people. But more importantly open up your mind to doing something new. It could cure your boredom. You may actually not need much to change at work if you can stimulate your mind through other possible diversions.
My wife and I are running a small ad agency together. Coincidentally we joined the same ad agency before marriage. We then left it to start our own agency. She looks after all client servicing while I run operations and creative.
The problem is that we are headed towards a divorce. What do we do with the agency? As ex-life partners, working together in the future is going to be impossible.
Chandra B.
I am sorry to hear your story. Shit happens.
My advice is to make a clean break. You are right when you say that working with an ex-life partner will not be easy at work, post the divorce.
This may be the most difficult time of your life at a personal level. Adding professional turmoil to a bad marriage may seem like a bad idea but frankly there is not much choice. I do not know your financial situation but if your wife is amenable, try for a settlement where either she takes the entire business and leaves you your entire personal assets or vice versa. If this is possible, you decide if you can retain all of the business by giving up perhaps a little more on the personal front.
I am also not sure if you actually know your clients since you say your wife was looking after client servicing. If now getting to know your clients looks difficult, giving up the business and retaining personal assets, especially cash and property if any would be better and you would be well advised to start from a zero base as the relationships you would build with clients would entirely be yours.
My only advice is whatever you do, try to do it as quickly and as painlessly as possible. Getting into too many knots will not help. Approach this as a bad dream that needs to be resolved. Give more than try to take more. Just save yourself time and torture. Some of these situations tend to become too emotional and the professional side tends to get compromised. It is best to disengage in the shortest possible time so that life can move on.
Kavita K.
Dear Kavita,
You have not told me what is it that you would like to do in the news channel. Do you want to become a reporter? An editor? Be behind the camera?
Have you gone and met any of the news channels? Have you interned at a news channel?
Honestly, without full information, giving advice could sometimes be erroneous.
I am taking one scenario. That you want to be a news reporter. And you have neither interned at a news channel, nor have you approached one so far.
The starting point is to list out all the news channels you would like to apply to. You will need to choose between English and local language. You will also need to choose between Business and General News if you are opting to be in English.
I suggest you use some friends and basic equipment to shoot a video CV of yourself. Also shoot short videos as mock reports to submit to the channel. Concentrate on your facial expressions, your voice modulation and your pronunciation. Make sure you have good camera presence.
Once you are done, you will need to start making the rounds of the news channels of your choice. This needs to be done both electronically, and physically. You need to mail these CVs and mock reports to the HR department, and to the editor, of the news channel. But frankly, it is the physical visits to these channels that may actually work better. You will need to persevere to get interviews and meetings with the right and relevant people in the channel. In a way, this is batting practice for being a news reporter … the ability to get to meet the right people to get your job done.
News channels do hire rookies. Mostly not so well paid. With long hours and lots of hard work. But if you come across as a good candidate with the right attitude, you can get hired.
If you are looking to join a vernacular channel, good command over the local language will be very attractive to them.
One good tip: channels are always looking for stringers in smaller locations. If you are amenable to be located in a smaller town outside of Mumbai, chances of getting hired are better.
I have been in advertising and media for 20 years now. But I am extremely bored of my job. Everything is so repetitive. Clients are needlessly demanding and unforgiving. Colleagues are so superficial. The business itself has lost its lustre. Salaries too are poor in comparison to other professions.
My problem also is that I have acquired no new skill sets over the years. I don’t read much. I have some interest in music. That is all. And yes, I forgot to mention that I am in client servicing, though I started copywriting initially many years ago.
I want to start a new chapter in my life.
Prabhakar P. S.
Prabhakar,
I think your first battle is the battle of the mind.
Look at life with a little more cheer and hope. Nothing can be so dark and hopeless. I have been in advertising for more than 30 years. Clients have always been demanding and unforgiving. You can also have uncharitable views about your colleagues. But advertising in itself is a fairly fun business, provided you want to enjoy it.
You have yourself stated that you are not much into reading and don’t seem to have too many interests outside of work. That is perhaps the core of the problem that you have. Advertising has changed and evolved over the years. To keep abreast of changes and new opportunities in the business, the least you have to do is to start reading up both about advertising as well as about digital and about brands. Expanding your knowledge and exposure is necessary in every business, more so in advertising. In these very columns I have advised joining Coursera courses to expand horizons. And improve skill sets. Also develop newer interests. Art? A young colleague of mine developed this as a new interest. He starting writing a column for a newspaper on Art and one day actually moved to join an auction house. He is very happy in his new assignment. You could also look at newer areas of interest. Sometimes these could become triggers for newer career opportunities.
Also look to change your job. Either within your own organization. Or outside. Change will do you wonders. Sometimes being in the same environment makes you morose and despondent. It helps to look at opportunities outside when your own assignment starts to become stale.
Take a piece of paper. Divide it into two parts: your strengths and your weaknesses. Write them down.
Repeat the process with writing down what you like (professionally) and what you don’t.
Then, honestly, put down gap areas where you lack. You may need to spend a lot of time on this self assessment and self evaluation. Your options will automatically suggest themselves to you. But as I said before, you will need to be honest with yourself.
Inevitably, make a good CV. Work hard at it.
Use LinkedIn to reach out to relevant people. Send them your CV. Try for personal meetings. Have patience.
Look at careers outside of advertising. Not easy. But do-able. But again such a shift would require positivity and a lot of aggression.
Join a class. Acting? Dancing? Singing? Painting? But do it just to meet more people. But more importantly open up your mind to doing something new. It could cure your boredom. You may actually not need much to change at work if you can stimulate your mind through other possible diversions.
My wife and I are running a small ad agency together. Coincidentally we joined the same ad agency before marriage. We then left it to start our own agency. She looks after all client servicing while I run operations and creative.
The problem is that we are headed towards a divorce. What do we do with the agency? As ex-life partners, working together in the future is going to be impossible.
Chandra B.
I am sorry to hear your story. Shit happens.
My advice is to make a clean break. You are right when you say that working with an ex-life partner will not be easy at work, post the divorce.
This may be the most difficult time of your life at a personal level. Adding professional turmoil to a bad marriage may seem like a bad idea but frankly there is not much choice. I do not know your financial situation but if your wife is amenable, try for a settlement where either she takes the entire business and leaves you your entire personal assets or vice versa. If this is possible, you decide if you can retain all of the business by giving up perhaps a little more on the personal front.
I am also not sure if you actually know your clients since you say your wife was looking after client servicing. If now getting to know your clients looks difficult, giving up the business and retaining personal assets, especially cash and property if any would be better and you would be well advised to start from a zero base as the relationships you would build with clients would entirely be yours.
My only advice is whatever you do, try to do it as quickly and as painlessly as possible. Getting into too many knots will not help. Approach this as a bad dream that needs to be resolved. Give more than try to take more. Just save yourself time and torture. Some of these situations tend to become too emotional and the professional side tends to get compromised. It is best to disengage in the shortest possible time so that life can move on.
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Sandeep goyal
