So here, in no particular order, are some suggestions that I often pass on to journalists who want to learn practical new skills and expand their horizons:
Start a blog. Publishing anything on the internet used to be difficult, due to content management systems that were about as user friendly as Satan. They left a bad taste, but it's all change nowadays. It has never been easier to publish all kinds of content online. You don’t believe me? Try Posterous, which allows you to post articles online via email. Start your own personal blog today. Or better still, start a subject-themed blog. This will be very empowering if you haven’t done it before. Posterous will have you blogging within five minutes, and you don't even need to register and sign in to start publishing.
Collaborate. If you’re worried about not having enough time to maintain a blog, then why not collaborate with some other people, or join an existing blog or some other publication? It will help broaden your experience, your CV, and is especially useful for offline writers looking to accumulate some online skills. People can achieve so much more when they work together.
Big up yourself. You may choose not to blog, but you should definitely have a portfolio site. Show off your skills and experience, and link to your work via your own online portfolio. There’s no reason not to.
Write about your passion. And we’re back to the first point, about starting a blog. I know a number of offline journalists who are stuck in rut, writing news stories that they’re not remotely interested in. People rarely become journalists unless they like to write, so why not start enjoying it again? What’s stopping you from writing about something that you love? Try to write about a passion at least once a week. It will help build out your portfolio. You’ll feel happier about your work. You’ll be able to express your opinions. And you may engineer a way out of a dead end job.
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