My experience at Soweto Urban

 

Soweto urban will always be my second home. When my time kickstarted at urban, I was quite nervous about whether I would do great or would I even be remembered when I eventually leave.

My first few months working for Soweto Urban was quite difficult, being introduced to the work space on its own was a great challenge. I struggled to find sources at first but as time went on and I evolved and formed new relations along the way, things became more simple. My fellow colleagues made me feel welcomed and offered me help with stories as much as they could.

My biggest challenge was learning new areas, I would have to catch an Uber taxi to a story at times to avoid getting lost in an area I don’t know, but luckily for me I always found great sources to interview and they would assure me that I will get used to the Soweto corners. It’s the little things that made me grow more along the way, it was the panic and the anxiety of having to submit my stories on time and also getting to work on time, which was a challenge at times. I was also lucky to have a mentor like Mzwandile who was always open and willing to teach me more about journalism.

 The saddest part during my internship was when the pandemic hit hard, duties had to be adjusted and we also had to adjust to the new living regulations which in turn affected my time to learn more and do more. Some of the times we were told we had to work from home and for me that was really a disappointment because I love being on the field and meeting new people while covering stories but that came to a dead end when I learned the hard way that I won’t be doing much of that anymore. 

Towards the end I adapted to everything and got used to everyone, covering stories for Soweto was just a great task for me to do. In the end I even achieved my goals, my goals of writing better articles and I even managed to score myself 3 front page bylines. I am proud of my journey, the ups and downs made me a better journalist to be equipped even more and I know that in future only great things can come my way. Soweto Urban has become my second home. My fellow colleagues and my mentor are now like family to me. I learnt a lot and I will forever the grateful for the experience. I surely will forever cherish every moment I got to spend with the Soweto Urban family. From now going forward, my doors remain open for greatness and I am ready for it.