Landing your Dream Job on Air

University of Canberra Alumni and Prime7 weather presenter, Kenny Heatley has been working in the media industry for over 13 years. Graduating with a Bachelor of Communication in Journalism, Kenny now presents the news and weather across NSW on Prime7.

His early struggles and the success he has had since, inspired him to write his e-book 'Screenpath: An Honest and Real Guide to Landing your Dream Job on Air'. A collaboration of tips and tricks from Kenny's colleagues and professionals, the book provides an insight into working in the media for journalism students and graduates.

We recently spoke to Kenny to chat about his e-book and his advice for breaking into one of the most competitive industries.

Don't Give Up

Trying to break into the media industry can be demoralising at times. I can't tell you how many times I was turned down, how many emails and letters went unanswered or how many times someone hung up on me. It was like a special club and I had no idea how to get a membership. After a while it starts to affect your self-esteem. But you have to keep going, because there are plenty of other people out there in the same boat as you but they just keep going. Eventually they work it out, strike it lucky and all it takes is one break, one chance. That chance WILL HAPPEN. If you strive on you will succeed and you will make it.

You cannot let rejections stop you

Be Prepared

There are a lot of misconceptions that people in the media industry don't work hard. A lot of time the public sees presenters attend social events and think that it's all champagne and red carpets. The reality is that it can be utterly exhausting and there are times when all you want to do is sit on the couch and watch 90's movies on Netflix. You can have days where you might be in the makeup room at 4am and you don't leave the office until 6pm. Some days you feel like an absolute robot, with pressures coming from all angles, but you do it because you love it.

Mistakes Happen

Mistakes and technical problems happen all the time! What makes you a good presenter and sets you apart from the others is how you deal with errors and move on. It's not just about when you are live on air and the prompter freezes and they can't cut to an ad break. It's also about your actions when you come off air as well. Do you make a scene and blame staff for problems, or are you part of the solution and work through issues as a team member? 

These decisions are so important in the industry.

Stay Humble

You are never too good for any job! You might be a presenter, but on days when a massive story breaks, you are a team player first and a presenter second. The PA's, Production Assistants, Studio Directors and News Anchors are all as important as each other. I've had days where I've done a live cross to a CNN reporter overseas about a breaking news story, to then do a coffee run for the team because they haven't had a break in 5 hours. Treat everyone this way the entire time and your career will be solid, as your value to the company, staff and management will exceed what they pay you.

Keep Learning

Learning is progress. Progression is happiness. People are most happy when they feel like they are progressing. There is always something to learn or someone to learn off. Always look for new opportunities and listen to feedback. This is the only way to get better and grow. Look for a better way to do something, don't just accept that 'this is the way it's always been done'. Even the best of the best are always looking for ways on how they can be better at what they do and continuously improve. 

The process of learning does not stop at University, in fact, it never ends for the super successful.

Words by Stephanie Cossetto and Kenny Heatley, images courtesy of Kenny Heatley.