by Siti Sarah Sofea
GOMBAK, 18 March 2023: It was Friday and instead of spending the day off with bed and food, I joined the “Management and Feature Writing Workshop” organised by the Secretariat of English Language & Literature (ELITS).
Credible information and knowledge on handling a web page and the contents within was shared by the speaker, Iylia Marsya Iskandar, who is a multimedia journalist in the New Straits Times Press Berhad and the former managing editor of IIUM Today.
The workshop was held to expose the students particularly the English Language and Literature (BENL) students to the world of journalism, both in the aspects of management and the writing in the preparation to publish their own website.
Through the rudiments of how a proper organisation in journalism works, I was reminded that being at the top of the hierarchy does not mean less work—unless you abuse your power to do so.
We were also introduced to the basic formula of hard news writing which consists of the lead, body and tail; along with the detailed formats which vary to different organisations.
While there were plenty of useful technical information shared, there is a number of hidden lessons applicable to daily life that I acquired from the workshop:
1. Making mistakes is part of learning
No one truly ever started something new in perfect performance. Galileo was not trusted, let alone applauded when he first put the idea that the sun was the centre of the orbit. No matter if it is related to writing or trying out a new sport, just brace yourself for the mistakes and deem them as the stairs for new achievements.
2. Start from somewhere
Preparation does matter but if perceiving yourself as unready or unqualified for activities that you are genuinely interested in as a reason to not start doing it, then stop being worried about prepping yourself.
3. Life is full of structures
While Marsya talked about the importance of scheduling and management in society, I think structures are not just constricted to society's hierarchy or the mathematical set or the buildings. In our life, setting the routine, measures, life philosophy and deadlines to tasks can help us to have order and efficiency. Relating to the previous two points, having structures can help to prop yourself up when faced with mistakes and guide you in things that you are not sure of.
By and large, the workshop has not just exposed me with the necessary knowledge in the field of journalism but it has also provided me with new ways to perceive the world and my own self.***
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