Tay Noronha. Freelance Broadcast Journalist.

Work out what areas of the job you need to improve in – and work on them.

The job involves a lot of different skills – interviewing, writing, news-reading, editing, sourcing stories, etc. You won’t be good at everything instantly, so it helps to know where your weaknesses lie and to put in extra-curricular practice to improve them.

Ask for feedback.

All the editors I’ve worked for have been very obliging and willing to spend 10 minutes of their time listening to a demo bulletin and offering some pointers. Your boss has a wealth of experience in the industry and is well placed to help you hone your skills.

Work experience!

Holding a Broadcast Journalism qualification is important, yes, as training in media law is crucial to doing the job. But when applying for paid work in the industry, the more you’ve already done as an intern, the more likely it is you’ll get a shot. It shows you can do the job and you already know what it involves.

Learn from your mistakes

In an ideal world, I wouldn’t make any mistakes. Unfortunately, mistakes happen, and when they do, beating yourself up about them isn’t productive – but learning from them is.

Don’t give up

It’s a very competitive industry and it requires a lot of dedication and hard work to get a break. There may well be times when you aren’t sure if you want to stick at it or not. But the opportunities are out there – you just have to keep trying.