Meet Lucia — and hold the judgment!

Do you look at a young person and start judging? If so, take a breath and stop!

THERE ARE SOME THANK-YOUs WHICH SPEAK A THOUSAND WORDS…

I’ve don’t think I’ve written here before about how I value young people coming into my business on work experience and I try to take two a year — I’ve got another young person lined up for September 2022.

Very quickly I can spot if someone has an aptitude for journalism and/or business. Some do not. Some don’t even turn up. Some expect you do all the running.

When I worked full-time in television I often had the ‘work experience’ kid put with me, mainly because many others found it a supreme pain the arse. Not me, I always embrace young people. When they are engaged and interested and they grow in confidence, they can teach you so much.

During my career, I’ve had some wonderful successes alongside a few who should not have bothered:

• The young woman who was just a young teenager, went on to become a broadcast journalist, worked alongside me and now runs her own successful production company.
• The young man who came from his degree studies, had a great idea which we made into a film and now he’s a producer for a global tv brand and travels the world making wonderful films.
• The guy who I mentored in a minor role who I said would one day be a series producer, who messaged me on the day he was made a ‘series producer’.

Most young people who are given a chance, or a small glimpse of what’s possible, are absolutely engaged, so grateful for the opportunity, willing to learn, grow in confidence to share their ideas, and excited to have their first taste of the profession they think they want to pursue.

Having a teenager from Swindon, Lucia, by my side recently was wonderful. I had a real daily insight into how a modern teenager thinks, what she enjoys, how she sees the world, something of the challenges she faces and her dreams.

Now I have a teenager at home — my son David — yet it’s a different dynamic when the setting is more business-like, more professional. David doesn’t have to prove himself to me. I know him well, I know what he enjoys and what subjects he’s good at. However working with another teenager who I did not know at all has been a blessing.