I have a new job

On Tuesday of last week I started as a Series Development Researcher for BBC StoryWorks, an arm of BBC Global News. We produce series of short films centred around a particular topic, such as climate change or medical technology, which are funded by brand partners. This commercial element is quite unique to my department; in the UK, the BBC’s work is funded by the licence fee and must therefore be completely impartial, whereas StoryWorks is branded content for international audiences. My role sits at the very beginning of the process: I conduct research on the topics of the series to find stories that we might be able to tell, and brand partners who might want to fund the films. There is an interesting challenge in the need to balance editorial judgement (choosing stories that are both compelling and meaningful) with commercial awareness (finding brand partners who are able and motivated to afford the production costs). After I left my previous role at Mayday, an early-stage SaaS start-up, I was looking for a role that would allow me to exercise a greater level of creativity, and to work collaboratively within a larger team of people. I didn’t have a strong vision for what that job would look like, but I took a leap of faith and trusted that something would materialise. I am delighted to report that, after completing my first week at BBC Studios, my leap of faith has brought me to what I consider to be the best possible outcome.

Very shortly after I finished at Mayday, I came across an advertisement for a Series Developer at the BBC and was immediately eager to apply. I was keen to get experience in production; I felt drawn to the world of film and TV (perhaps because that is the world that my parents and most of their friends come from), and I understand production to be an incredibly social industry, which I have learned is an important factor in my motivation at work. Although I met all of the requirements listed in the job description, I didn’t fancy the chances of my application being chosen out of the hundreds they were sure to receive. I decided to reach out to individuals from the team on LinkedIn to ask if they had any tips on how to make my application stand out. I have never done this before, and I now have no idea why this hack isn’t more commonly used. One of the team got back to me and suggested that it would be best for me to speak directly with the Head of Series Development, and offered to make an introduction. From there, I arranged a short phone call to ask for more information about the role, which I used to refine my application. With my fingers double crossed, I sent it off.

I didn’t hear anything back for around a month, which I assumed meant that they had hired somebody else. I was disappointed, but I understood that my chances had been slim as there must have been plenty of applicants with more relevant experience than me. I had sent off enough other applications that my eggs were spread out across several baskets. I also started to wonder if building up a more varied portfolio of freelance work might be better suited to me, as someone who likes variety and values flexibility. I was offered a temp position to assist in the preparations for, and delivery of, a conference in Prague, and have also been accepted onto a programme that offers young people free training to become a qualified coach. I can tutor Spanish, and teach yoga. I also wondered if I could find a way to get paid for some of my writing, and decided that the first step towards that end was to start ‘publishing’ my work again. I uploaded my first blog post in six months and less than ten minutes later, I received an email from the Head of Series Development who I had spoken with roughly one month prior. He told me that, as I suspected, they had filled the position I applied for with someone who had more direct experience. However, he also told me that there was a freelance position as a Researcher for the same team, and that I could be a good fit for it. I was thrilled. We arranged an interview which took place on Friday of the same week, and by Wednesday of the following week we had arranged for me to start just six days later.

So, I am working for BBC Studios as a freelancer, meaning that I am not officially BBC staff. They have contracted me for an initial commitment of three months, which works really well for me for two reasons. The first reason is that working freelance offers greater flexibility for time off, which will come in extremely handy this summer, when I had planned to work at the conference in Prague, to go to Devon for my cousin’s wedding, and to attend the legendary Glastonbury festival after having to give up my ticket for last year. The second reason that working freelance suits me very well at this particular juncture in my career is that, by working for an initial period of three months, I’ll have the perfect amount of time to get a feeling for the work and assess how well I am suited to it, and it to me. I learned a great many things during my time at Mayday and from the reflection I have done since I left, but among the most important lessons is my newfound understanding of the value of giving things a go. Now more than ever, there are an inordinate number of ways to earn a living. For young people, it can induce a huge amount of anxiety to feel like we must face all of these options and select one to dedicate our working lives to. Even though all the evidence suggests that we are likely to have around five different ‘careers’ over the course of our lifetime, there is still a very real pressure to find the thing that you love at a young age, to ‘follow your passion’, and to find your calling in life. I’m beginning to resent the very idea of a calling in life, because no matter how hard I try, I can’t seem to hear mine. I have felt confused and frustrated by the pressure to choose a path for myself ever since I couldn’t decide what to study at university. I ended up choosing to study on a flexible, multi-disciplinary Liberal Arts programme to keep my options open. I think it would be fair to say that my options remain open, six years later.

I currently have an opportunity to learn from a team of inspiring and knowledgeable people within one of the best broadcasting organisations in the world, and the significance of that opportunity is not lost on me. I have loved my first week. It felt hugely exciting to work in the bustling offices of Television Centre and the famous New Broadcasting House, to receive my very own BBC lanyard, and to meet a team full of the most welcoming and friendly people I could hope to work alongside. I have started research for the series I have been assigned to, guided by a senior Series Developer who sets an amazing example of how to do the job well. The work I am doing feels like it has huge potential to be engaging and genuinely impactful, and I’m really looking forward to finding my feet and gaining confidence as I navigate my way through this new challenge. There is much to learn but I feel grateful just to have the opportunity to soak it all up, and to explore this new chapter of my professional journey.

Cover image: Lead of Faith by Brady Nielson