As I have experienced the business world–and do take into account that my business is the media–I have come to the conclusion that it is almost entirely about who you know. That said, if you know someone but the quality of your work is shoddy, it won’t help you at all. But frankly, if you don’t know someone and you have awesome work, there’s a very small chance that anyone will ever see it. You have to be tough and tenacious and, well, meet people!
Which brings me to tonight’s activity: the mediabistro.com all-media party. This is an event set up for professionals in the media only (no interns or students) by the journalists’ go-to site mediabistro. The site has become the hub of journalism news, industry scoop, and job postings. Anyway, everyone who is anyone in Austin media has made an appearance at one of these happy hours or another.
And I, a writer who has been back in Austin for just over a year, have been to every single one of these happy hours. And at every single one, I have met someone who has gotten me a assignment or assignment lead. Looking back, I’m kind of amazed. Moral of the story: go network!
Tonight’s all-media party is at Cedar Door from 5:30-7:30. Or 6-8. I got two conflicting emails, so I’ll probably go from 6-7:30.