During the next eleven months, I anticipate challenges, deadlines and pitfalls. I cannot accurately predict the outcome, but I can outline goals.
Made a conscious decision to approach assignments and tasks journalistically.
Began to make preparations for career advancement.
Mastery: Personal Development and Leadership
Began to better understand the process of attaining mastery in a subject.
Made a bold choice to marry journalism and filmmaking elements.
Began preparations for potential final project subject.
New Media & Communications
Begin to reach out to target demographic and inspirational figures.
Make an effort to utilize Tumblr on a regular basis to chronicle the overall mastery journey.
Writing For Interactive Media
Continue to work on Tumblr entries outside of assignments.
Begin to combine and/or link respective social media platforms to attain a broader audience.
Use course instruction to practice different methods for writing and scripting to best engage the target audience.
Plan a BBQ with friends because you’re due for one this year. While you’re at it, make sure you have finished the fire pit for the backyard. If you’re reading this in July, you suck.
When you receive the course syllabus, bring it to work and speak to the news director and see if he can offer additional insights related to the course objectives that may be useful during the month.
Research and Investigation Skills Development
Watch Fletch! and Fletch! Lives, but for entertainment purposes only and not as actual research for this months course, even though that would be pretty awesome.
By now, you’ve probably been watching a lot of news documentaries and have read a ton to prepare for courses like this. Keep it up! Your production skills, military experience and background in criminal investigation will serve you well, but there is a reason detectives don’t go undercover to find breaking news stories, so pay attention!
Multimedia Development and Editing
This course should be a walk in the park as by now, as you’ll have already been paying attention to the editing assembly of all those news documentaries you’ve been watching. Coupled with your professional experience in film production and post-production, you should be a wizard at this point, right?
How’s that Tumblr looking? Post something. Right now.
It’s nearing Halloween. Try not to eat all the candy this year. You heard kids outside playing as you wrote this. How will you feel when they come to the door and you’re covered in chocolate and shame? Moderation.
You’re an online student in an internet connected world and have a fantastic understanding of social media and digital content delivery for your age. You know what you’re doing with film. Make sure you’ve already prepared to adapt that to online broadcasting.
Seriously, about that candy…
This is where you get to put your personal stamp on your work. We both know you can write and you have a, let’s say, unique style. If we can apply that to on-camera work, you’ll be great. So practice that. A lot.
Save room for pie this year. I know how you are with turkey.
Tip: You work with multimedia journalists. Learn from them. See what they do that works. Pay attention to what they do or say that doesn’t work. Regardless of who they are now, a year from today, they will be the competition. Exploit their weaknesses (figuratively, I mean) so you can rise above. Remember, you’re attaining mastery. They are attaining associates degrees in vague subjects that aren’t wholly journalism.
Social Media & Online Community Engagement
Welcome back from your coffee break. I see that you’ve taken this section to heart already. Good for you!
You already have a social media presence. During the months leading up this, you should be working on strengthening it.
Keep strengthening that online community. It wouldn’t be a terrible idea to create a page within your Facebook dedicated to your online persona. You know you have one. Everyone does. Professional You and Actual You should remain separate online. You deserve privacy. it wouldn’t hurt to associate this alternate page with a secondary email account to trap unwanted spam and monitor comments. They are coming, buddy.
Public Relations & Reputation Management
You see the previous month? You wrote that for a reason. Happy New Year, by the way.
Ethics. Morality. These are things you’ve already worked on (read: showed remarkable restraint) while updating the stations website each night.
By now, you should have (hopefully) a moderate web presence within your online community. Maintain your credibility.
Hopefully this course will offer additional methods for handling the public. I know you’re an introvert, but you fake it pretty well when you need to. Wear that hat when necessary.
New Media Publishing & Distribution
Always be prepared to adapt to change.
This course is meant to teach you how to overcome those changes. Learn it. Use it. Prepare for it.
You’ll be learning about the business end of things. This will be a big help to you. You are good in a team, but you’re a natural leader, even when you convince yourself you aren’t. People come to you for a reason. Remember this.
New Media Journalism Final Project
You did it. You’ve arrived. If I know you as well as I think I do, you already had this moment planned out months ago.
Your final project should be universally engaging across multiple platforms. What you write, transcribe for video. Be yourself, but embrace your persona. Look back at the past year and remember everything you’ve done to get here.
You made it. I’m proud of you. Now get out there and take what you’ve learned; pass it on, and find your bliss.
