From dreading the thought of work to finding my dream job, via Creativity Works

Posted 22 January 2021

22-year-old Jeeven Rihal had finally plucked up the courage to leave a job that was not only draining but that made him dread going into work. He then spotted a Facebook ad in January 2020 that would change the course of his career.

I had just left a job I was really unhappy in, but I was finding it difficult to get a job in the media. I didn’t realise how crowded the market was for media jobs. Scrolling through Facebook one day, I saw an advert for Creativity Works Season 10, a ten-week programme run by Media Trust that offers free media and employment skills training and mentoring to young people in London who are not currently working. Clicking on the application, I thought, “What do I have to lose?”

Exceeding expectations

I was expecting to go into different media companies to see what working in the media would be like on a day-to-day basis. Unfortunately Covid-19 meant that this was no longer possible, so all of the training and mentoring moved online. Despite not having that face-to-face interaction, the creativity flowed! We were on Zoom every day, having masterclasses from top companies such as Twitter and Snapchat. It was amazing. We also become an online family, which was so supportive during a difficult time being in lockdown.

With a good team, you can do absolutely anything

The standout moment for me during the programme was creating a podcast with my group. It was the first time we had worked as a team and we were having to do everything remotely, which was challenging. It was amazing to see our podcast come together and it taught me that with a good team, you can do absolutely anything!

Building my confidence

I lacked confidence when it came to speaking out and voicing my opinions. In the past I was always reluctant to do this. Creativity Works helped me build my confidence in speaking up and sharing my thoughts and ideas with others in my group and in the masterclasses.

At the end of the programme, we were sent jobs in the media industry and I saw one that I loved with MediaCom so I applied. After a long and strenuous application process, I got the job! Creativity Works gave me both the skills and the confidence to land my dream job.

Learning skills you can put into practice

I learnt so many practical skills as well as being enlightened as to the different areas of the media and creative industry that I didn’t know of before. I’ve learnt so many transferable skills that are serving me well in my new job and I know will serve me well into the future. One of my favourite parts of the programme was all the writing tasks that the Creativity Works team gave us, especially the listicles as it allowed me to explore my passion of writing even more!

If you’re thinking about applying for Season 12 of Creativity Worksjust do it!

Creativity Works: Multimedia Genius Training, supported by Mayor’s Fund for London, Berkeley Foundation and Citi Foundation, is a free, intensive 10-week crash-course of high-impact media masterclasses and employment skills training for media-focused young Londoners who are not in employment, education or training.

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