Six things I've learnt about interviewing
An early career journalist gives her tips for getting started
In this week’s newsletter, Zainab Hussain, an early career freelance journalist who has been working with FFJ co-founder Emma through our work experience and mentorship scheme, shares how she has overcome her fear of interviewing.
As she points out, there are a few things she wished she had known at the start, so she has come here to kindly share some of the wisdom she’s gathered along the way.
It took me a year to build the courage to conduct my first interview as a writer. It really didn’t have to take as long as it did. As someone with no formal journalism training, I found things like interviewing especially daunting. Here are some of the things I wish I had known starting out.
1. Don’t wait until you’re ready — you’ve already got skills that make you a good interviewer (even if you think you don’t)
Interviewing can be intimidating, especially if you’ve never done it before. I had interviewed people for jobs, and research participants for studies, but interviewing as a journalist seemed like a different world.
I kept looking for more information, tips and courses. A piece of paper to say that I could. That’s not what I needed. Yes, you can and should build on existing skills. Workshops and courses are valuable, and preparation and practice are key, but once you’ve learnt the basics, stop researching and dive in. You are ready to tackle this now.
2. Write a list of questions, but don’t stick to it
Yes, you’re ready to tackle an interview, but you definitely still need to prepare. Research the topic (and if relevant, the person you want to interview) ahead of time, think about what you want to get out of the interview, and have a list of questions prepared.
You’ll have limited time, so make sure you prioritise the questions you most want the answers to, and don’t be afraid to go off script — interviews work much better if it flows like a conversation, not an interrogation. If the interviewee mentions something that piques your interest, definitely follow your curiosity and ask questions not on your list.
3. Watch someone else do it (if you can)
I had attended workshops and read countless articles on interview skills, but it still felt alien to me. I didn’t feel like I could do something I had never seen before in a real life setting — like I was trying to drive a car for the first time having only ever read the theory.
I then came across the Freelancing for Journalists work experience initiative. One of my main motivations for taking part was to see how the interview process worked and what it looked like. Being able to sit in on interviews was immensely helpful in demystifying the process. I finally knew what it was supposed to look like and it gave me the confidence to do it myself.
4. You can definitely get interviews as a freelancer starting out
This was my biggest worry when I first decided to try health journalism — how do I, as someone who wasn’t an established journalist, and was not affiliated to any publication, get taken seriously? I thought that if I requested an interview, I would either be ignored or told I didn’t have the credentials. So far, neither of those things have happened. I’ve found that most people are happy to talk about their work and their experiences, and would like others to learn about the things they’re passionate about. The fact that I don’t have years and years of experience doesn’t seem to matter as much.
One thing I found helpful was seeing example emails/ templates on how to request interviews. Like shadowing, it demystifies the process a little, makes it more transparent, and lets you know you’re on the right track.
5. Have a back-up plan
By my fourth interview, I got pretty comfortable with Otter.ai recording and transcribing my interviews for me. Except when I started that fourth interview, it didn’t work. My Zoom record button also seemed to have disappeared, and the record function on my laptop didn’t want to cooperate.
I ended up recording the interview on my phone and there was a short delay in starting the interview (the interviewee was really nice about it), and it all worked out fine. I don’t know shorthand — which would have come in handy if all else failed — and won’t be learning it anytime soon, but I know to have alternative options in case the tech fails me again.
6. It doesn’t have to be perfect
My first interviews were far from perfect. It didn’t flow as smoothly as I would have liked and I had to pause to check my notes a lot, but I got the interview, and the info I needed to write the piece. I also started building the skills that would make me a better interviewer. Learning the theory is great. It helps you prepare and do a decent job, but practicing has helped me learn and grow as an interviewer more than theory alone ever could.
There is so much I still need to learn about interviewing; lots of knowledge to gain and skills to build. I regret putting off starting for so long, but I’m looking forward to see how much I can develop by continuing to dive in.
Freelancing for Journalists Resources
If you want to find out more about the wide range of resources we offer at Freelancing for Journalists including the podcast, guides, training, and work experience and mentorship scheme visit our website. We started life as a book but over the past four years have become a lot more, including a large Facebook community.
Triumph of the week
Getting three bites from the same cherry
That feeling when
You get excited by an idea but instead have a load of boring deadlines to meet
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Bye for now!