Thread by @mentorshipzim

Thread 4: Public Relations & Other things.

To avoid boring you to death, I will just scroll through these quickly. As I stated, Journalism doesn't pay as much but it’s a passion for me. To fund my ever-travelling lifestyle - I needed other avenues to make money. Real money.

2. Whilst Google, FB & Journalism made me comfortable, I would have never been able to travel about as I did and do journalism the way I did.

To do that, I went back to the very same networks that I began creating in 2005-06-07.

I cannot shout this loud enough.

3. To date, my advertising & branding company does media & / Cyber Security work for two commercial banks and many other firms in Zim & SA. I do the same for one bank's SA office.

My PR consultancy has taken me to the tables of Head's of state in 5 countries. Networks did that.

4. I don't want to dwell much on these activities, as I am weary of my clients being jigsaw identified. But, my PR is based on networks. I help plug for publicity. I help with surveys. I have also done Spokesperson gigs in SA for my father @psbushiri & got gigs for his friends.

5. Its one the things that helped me out. I met many wealthy, influential, or powerful people. I wasn't always treated right immediately. But my work spoke for me. And my references helped me a lot. When working for people with money - references count.

6. The basis of my PR is level headedness. Being able to communicate effectively. Understanding the brand I represent, the sentiments against it and telling them how to package themselves in ways that inspire confidence. It helps that I am branding guru too. So I sell packages.

7. My advice if you ever want to follow my path, cultivate networks. There is a very nice sermon which my brother Jealous Mawarire always speaks about. Its called "How to behave in the palace". When you meet influential people, there is way to behave, during & after.

8. You need to be clear about what you offer. People don't hire PR & Branding consultants for services. They hire them for benefits & results. Sell these. Sell a whole package. Have a clean clear track record of confidence & confidentiality. Especially when you are selling advice

9. One of the things I am ever proud of, is that I can walk up to most people in Zimbabwe, politicians, business people, etc... I know I walk in with references from people across the divide. I know after we pitch - when they make calls - they are told to hire us without delay.

10. And this applies across the divide, regardless of how polarised & binary it is. I learnt to make friends. To keep in touch. To harness relationships. It doesn't just help me in journalism. It helped me when I started selling advice on PR & branding. It was beyond critical.

11. Meet people & gain their trust & you'll will meet their many friends. Each of those friends represents an opportunity to sell your skills someday - but these skills must be provable & you must be genuinely qualified to do them. Sadly many youths I know miss it here.

12. As I said I will keep it shorter after this. Assuming that all this has been done and you finally arrive at the 'big' stage where you are travelling the world, getting the audience you desire & never worrying about money - its only the start. Success brings new headaches.

13. Progress brings terrible attention. I put in so much work at the start. Didn't think I would be where I am at 29. I mean at 24 I was starving.

But when my trees started to bear fruit, they exploded!

I had many mentors on how to get here - but none for the after. 😨

14. Had been so fixated with escaping poverty, owning this, having everything I want & living how I want. But when it happened I lost passion for life. I had to re-define me, find new reasons to wake up & work hard. I also made a lot of money - and lost a lot it straight after

15. And becoming prominent gave birth to new enemies. Strangers I had never met all of a sudden had passionate views about me. Strangers wanted to control my voice - its as if I woke up and I didn't belong to me or had power to define me. This picture 👇👇says it all. (Jolly's)

16. To cut it short, progress brings attention, especially if you are unlucky to report or dabble in matters that elicit emotions. I went through the phases of

1. ignoring insults
2. responding
3. getting anxious & self censoring (I still censor)
4. blocking & muting

17. Every journalist goes through this. Even the biggest names in the world whom we follow like Andre Neil, Amanpour & John Sparks & Stephen Sackur. They are attacked.

You must prepare sadly that your parents will be insulted. Your spouse dragged in. Your kids. Your family.

18. How do you deal with that?

Resist the urge to indulge. Grow a thick skin. Always remind yourself that people with winter temperature IQs & junkies on street corners are also on these apps.

These apps have given them a platform to exchange blows with anybody. Don't indulge

19. Go to your settings. Block and mute. Do it with impunity. Protect the ones that love you. And guard your spaces.

My rule is - If I stumble across you being rude, mean, or insulting towards another person - I will BLOCK you.

I will not wait for you to do it to me directly.

20. If you can be so vile to one person, it means you can be vile to me someday. It is a rule that protects my Timeline. I have regrets about ever responding in kind. Especially after meeting some of my worst trolls. I remember interviewing a kid who applied to join our firm -

21. - two days after he had said the meanest things about my wife. I remembered him vividly because my wife sent me the Screenshot. Next thing he walks in for an interview - with the most painful story of desperation. He was shocked to see & be told that I own the firm. Its life.

22. Block & move on. Humans are impossible. Its not that people want you to report news. No. They want you to report the news that they want to hear. Its not that they want to hear your voice. They want your voice to say what they want to hear. Don't internalize it. Block &go on

23. Journalism will come at a huge cost. Especially prominent journalism. You will be hated. You will be loathed. You will be loved. You will get anxious. You will get depressed. If by chance you cover a conflict zone as I did, the PTSD stays with you for good. It is what it is.

24. Throughout all of this, if you have a passion for it, you will stay, or as I did, you will walk away and focus on other forms of journalism. Ones that you will practice in peace. Remember I said I left out so many things. I am a camera lover. I own maybe 20 Cameras & lenses

25. Outside of IT & all those things I learnt. I spent many years learning about cameras & photography. Its a whole world of physics & maths that will surprise you. I teach it, I do reviews - and camera manufacturers & sellers gift me expensive toys to play with & review.

26. When I started buying & collecting cameras back in 2014, my family thought I was suffering from 'poor man syndrome' - that disease that makes you want to spend all the money you get the first time because you had never handled such amounts. But the madness had a method & plan

27. Am preparing to shoot football league games in the UK, when the season starts. It makes sense now. My principles were the same though. I invested in skills, took courses, established networks. And now I have moved on to a path that nobody ever saw coming. But I prepared.

28. I still have so much to say about sport, music, what it’s like to work in newsrooms, about different career opportunities. But I am dazed, and really think I have hogged the platform enough. After all, as I said, half the time I can't get out of my own head. LOL.

29. My hope is that, if you choose journalism you know what you are getting yourself into. & get in with your eyes open. Know where the money is, plan, invest into your skills, by all means keep relationships & bridges - you need them to get a byline.

30. The principles of success in journalism or life are the same. Read, get skills, develop relationships with people. I have lived in SA, Nairobi, Hong Kong, UK, etc... What took me 7 years to achieve now takes me months. Get skills. Learn. Develop relationships. Mind your mouth

31. I will always do my best to help. I have about 8 journalists whose websites I either paid for, or whose hosting & designs I pay for. Its my hope they get lasting income opportunities. Am always open to take questions about how I did it, how I do it & help others with setups.

32. Am not a guru but @PTChimusoro @CSChiwanza @L_JayMut @SaprinK & others can testify that I always am open to help with technical knowledge, advice, pointers. There is an open market for money. It just needs the industry, skills, enterprise, and passion.

33. Last and least, am just an ordinary dude. As I said, I am surprised I was invited to give advice here. Most times, am on my computer, or fooling around with an open camera. I speak a lot with people but only share what is necessary & speak only when I have something to say.

34. Thank you for taking your time to read. If this helps somebody, then great. My principle is I don't lose anything by helping some get money. Well I lose time but then I have lots of that on my hands, generally. Remember, skills, school, networks - bye bye 😎. #ThreadsEnd.