by Linda Castillo
Recently, I had the opportunity to be a part of VivaFest Presents: Silicon Valley Women in the Media. The panel consisted of women in media from executives, journalists, publishers and entrepreneurs gathered to share their personal stories and wisdom on career, family and leadership. Eileen Ponce from Telemundo moderated the one-hour panel discussion featuring Monica Amador from El Observador/San Francisco Bay Area, Ysabel Duron a Journalist and Founder of Latinas Contra Cancer, Claudia Estrada from Estrella-TV, Suzanne St.John-Crane from CreaTV and me.
Whether you are in or interested in pursuing a career in the filed of journalism, this panel discussion included insights, humor and advice that you can apply to your career.
After the panel discussion, I started to think about the advice that I would share with anyone interested in pursuing a career in media and came up with the following:
- Build relationships – Early on find a mentor in the career that you are interested in pursuing. Ensure that you nurture your mentor relationships by staying in contact with your mentor as you progress in your career. And, be sure to pay it forward and be a mentor to someone else.
- Work hard and never stop learning – Take on projects that are continuously challenging you so that you are adding new skills and gaining work experience. Continue to learn by going to industry conferences, summits, and completing certification programs.
- Look for opportunities in all areas – Seek out new projects and leadership roles at your current job. However, don’t be discouraged if you are not getting all assignments or projects that you want at your current job because you can look for opportunities outside of your workplace. For example, you can seek out volunteer opportunities or board member positions that will provide you valuable experience.
What advice would you give to someone starting out his or her career?
Linda Castillo is the Founder and Executive Editor of http://www.modernlatina.com/. She writes on topics that empower and inspire Latinas including art, motherhood, green living, culture, travel, and issues transforming the Latino community. Linda has earned a B.S. in Business and a M.S. in Mass Communications from San Jose State University.