Portfolio of Publication Real Moms - Article Example

?Portfolio of work Part Publication The publication is a magazine called Real Moms. It will be sold nationwide with distribution centers in major cities around the country. ‘Real Moms’ will be released on a monthly basis in order to give writers ample time to gather content for the publication. Since most of the topics will be related to women’s maternal experiences, it is likely that they will unfold at a slower pace than news items. A monthly publication would be justifiable in this regard. ‘Real Moms’ will be a print magazine that will contain a series of colorful pictures, features and product offerings. This medium will allow the company to benefit from direct sales of the publication. Unlike online sources which often rely on advertising revenue, a print magazine can take advantage of both direct sales of the product as well as advertising proceeds. Furthermore, it will be easier to estimate the readership and market share of the product when this format is adopted (Williams, 2009). The magazine will have giveaways and prizes attached, so a tangible medium is the best alternative. Mothers are the target audience for the monthly edition. These women are likely to be educated, working and social. Age may not be a relevant segment because stories will target mothers with teenagers, infants or children of school-going age. Nonetheless, the design of the magazine will be biased towards fun-loving and upbeat personalities. These women will not be one-track minded. They may be administrators at their places of work, members of the local rotary club or volunteers at their churches. A number of them are likely to wear the proverbial ‘many hats’. This explains why the magazine will contain a rich mix of topics. Since the publication will be relatively cheap, it is probable that readers will not belong to one income status. It is meant to be all-encompassing and accessible, even to those who are struggling to make ends meet. This idea is ripe for the local print magazine market because women require an unpretentious and accessible reading item. The current magazines in the market do not cover a wide range of topics like the ones that this magazine will contain. Most of them have very narrow topic selections. ‘Real Mom’ will be different because it will address all manners of lifestyle issues. Furthermore, its emphasis on people’s real-life experiences will make it personal and relatable. The magazine will go for a $1.5, which is much lower than other magazines in the market. Low prices often guarantee a wide reach and thus high circulation. Furthermore, this amount will lure infrequent magazine readers to try out this new brand. Part 2: Cover letter Dear ‘Real Mom’ Hiring Manager I would like to submit my application for the position of staff writer as described in your newspaper advertisement. Real Mom is a publication that is at the heart of my personal interests. I have been an advent reader of the magazine since its inception. Its engaging topics have always been delivered in a fun and heartwarming manner. As a former writer for ‘Fitness Fanatic’ magazine, I have submitted 150 articles and published 75% of them. I wrote about various lifestyle topics like “the unpalatable taste of artificial sweeteners”, “Cheat days," “Etiquette rules for weight watchers," “Halle Berry’s workout regimen” and “Unrealistic expectations at the gym." I relied on interviews, newspapers, books and online authorities for these articles. These topics were often original ideas that I pitched to my superiors. Therefore, I meet one of the requirements you described in the advertisement about conducting research and conceptualizing ideas. Prior to the submission of topics, members of my organization gave the senior editor suggestions on possible areas of publication. Sometimes the magazine leaned towards particular angles, which we needed to build on. I am thus familiar with group dynamics after collaborating with several staff members in such sessions (Conley and Stephen, 2006). This is also a quality that you alluded to in the job description. In my experience within this magazine, I have interviewed a number of experts on my targeted topics. Some of the interviewees were prominent personalities like swimming legend Stefani Matthews while others were proprietors of local training centers. I took the time to represent the experts’ point of view in an as accurate a manner as possible. The advertisement cited interview skills as one of the requirements of the job. I believe that I have ample experience in this area. Prior to my position at “Fitness Fanatic” I was a freelance writer for several online blogs that covered a range of topics. Some of them dwelt on entertainment. Others focused on dating, travels, food and even parenting. You will find a full description of these positions in my CV. The last topic is directly related to your area of emphasis at Real Mom. I currently possess a bachelor’s degree in journalism, from the University of …..These classes sparked an interest in research, creativity and writing. I learnt how to meet deadlines during course assignments and also how to work with limited resources to get work done. There were situations when I could not find any information on course content but still had to deliver my projects on time. It was because of these reasons that I became inventive. Perhaps the most relevant quality that I possess is my status as a parent. I have a six-year-old daughter who just recently started school. This quality would add that much-needed personal flavor to my contributions in the company. I believe that my experience in the magazine industry and educational background give me a unique advantage as a potential employee for the company. I have included my CV and academic material for your review. You are welcome to get in touch with me through the contact information in the CV. Yours Sincerely, ……. Part 3: 1000 word article Sometimes failure is best This January, my little angel started grade school. In the previous years, I had grown accustomed to smiley faces and excellent grades from her teachers, but shocking changes came our way this time. Miranda had barely surpassed the average mark, and was second last in class. One would never have expected such results from such a sociable, engaged and witty child. I was initially in denial, and thought that the poor marks were a universal problem in her class. Her teacher politely informed me that the best and second best performers were just 15 marks shy of the total score. Was this a case of total disengagement from class? Why was my child the second-worst performer? I started thinking about all the possible causes of this problem. Perhaps she needed some extra coaching; alternatively, her teacher may not be getting through to her. Maybe my Miranda had development challenges that destroyed her ability to concentrate. I even harbored the thought that she was just not an intelligent child. As is the case with most of my problems, I consulted the Internet on this matter. Lately, Google is indeed my best friend; she seems to possess all the answers to my troubles. I found a plethora of information on why children get poor grades at this stage of development. Some of the advice was quite technical and more favorable for educators than parents like me. Many of them pointed fingers while others encouraged caregivers to take charge. An article by Dr. James Lehman immediately caught my attention. His approach was quite different from mainstream advocates. Lehman encouraged readers to sometimes let their children fail. He believed that letdowns in class may sometimes be treated as a crisis. However, every crisis had a dangerous element as well as prospective one. Only the most insightful parents move beyond the dangerous part and get to the prospect hidden in the problem. The expert believes that if a child continuously gets approval from school, then they might not learn about actions and their consequences. A bad grade is a chance for the child to draw lessons about the importance of revision or concentration in class. It is only by experiencing that discomfort that they will make better choices next time. When one gets a negative report about their child, the natural thing to do for most mothers is to protect their children from these feelings. It may be counterintuitive to do nothing but trying to change the child’s grade only teaches them that someone will always fight for them. Such mothers cause their children to undermine the value of responsibility. They will come to believe that their mother is all-powerful. These young ones will realize that all one need is power to get through life. Things like manipulation and exploitation will become the core of that child’s values. As I marinated over these issues, I found that there were so many scapegoats for Miranda’s outcomes. I could blame her school, administrator’s attitude, and many others. While these may be valid reasons, they are still not the most powerful ones. If I chose confrontation, then I would merely be pursuing the easy path; not the right one. It is natural to look outward than inward. I came to the conclusion that her grade was not the end of her school life. It was a wakeup call for her. Miranda and I now needed to identify and change the things that we were doing wrong. It took a lot of time and patience, but this September; my daughter was the proud holder of a badge with the phrase “Best in English”; I could not be more proud of her. She was fourth overall, but what matters is that only three percentage points separated her from the ultimate position. It was not rocket science that got us here; sheer dedication and consistency were the secret ingredients. My regimen may not apply to all children, but I believe that one can borrow an element or two from it. We needed to be target-oriented, so I started by compiling a list of test papers from the previous years. Fortunately, they keep giving them similar questions from one year to the next. Miranda’s reading skills were unimpressive, so she could not answer questions because she did not understand them. I purchased a reader’s book for first graders. We learnt different categories of words daily. For instance, if we covered ‘sh’ words like shirt and bush on one day, we would, then read words that ended with ‘er’ like water, brother and teacher, on the next day. She substantially improved after two months, and could read questions with confidence. I then adopted a thematic approach to each revision. If we were focusing on science that day, then we would study parts of the body, parts of a plant and any other parts that she was expected to know. I believe repetition was the key behind our success. It was tempting to skip these tiresome sessions and simply wait for the last two weeks to exams. However, even Miranda would display personal initiative after coming back from school. We did this for at least five days a week and would compensate over the weekend if we had skipped some days. Miranda’s poor performance at school was a motivator for her in subsequent periods. In fact, she would never have worked this hard if she has passed her first exams. The results also caused me to participate in my child’s education. It is likely that not all children will respond to this regimen. In fact, the regimen is beside the point; what one should focus on is allowing the child to experience discomfort regarding the consequences of their actions, and then work towards improving them. I will continue with this approach because my daughter forgets so quickly. Some parents are fortunate; they do not even have to revise with their children as they may remember what they learnt in class. This was not my journey; instead of making the issue about me and my letdowns, I chose to forge ahead. Look at it this way; you wouldn’t want to deal with a little monster who thinks they are entitled to everything. Well, this is what happens when you try to shield a child from a bad grade. My Miranda has now developed a tolerance for discomfort. She has learnt to go the whole nine yards for success. This was indeed a lesson in personal responsibility for her. Experiences will squeeze your child into a corner but she must learn to deal with it (Kohn, 2006). Our little educational experiment was a tutorial in life, and hopefully it will help someone else out there battling with this issue. Part 4: 1,200 word article Reborn in tribal territory: How one woman’s humbling experience with Tanzanian herdsmen redefined her values. Irene’s plane had just set foot in this East African airport. She had no idea what lay in store on the other side of the immigration office. The traveler had made no arrangements with locals. When asked why she chose this path, Irene reiterated that she wanted a break from all the pressures of modern living. “We are meant to enjoy each part of our journey, but society teaches us that unless your day is packed with activities, then you are not really successful.” This mother of two looks out into the distance when discussing her African adventures. It feels like she has so much to share, but she holds back. Irene does not want to pour out everything she encountered in this culture; she wanted to make every word count. “The truth is that we all want to be happy.” She retorted. “My children are grown now; my first born just started working and his sibling has gone off to college. I thought that their departure would have been an opportunity to recuperate and have some time to myself. Fate would have it that I would be busier than ever. My clothing retail business was just peaking, so there was no slowing down. After much deliberation, I hired an operations manager that I could trust to take care of my store. The anxiety was too much, and I just wanted to experience simplicity. I knew that there must be more to life than just money, so I prepared for my journey to Africa.” Irene reports that all her neighbors thought she was going through a mild life crisis. “what do you intend on achieving there?”, “This is utterly pointless” they added. Some of them felt that she was not really serious about it. Reality dawned on them when Irene packed her bags and headed to the airport. As soon as she arrived in Arusha Tanzania, a handful of taxi drivers engulfed her. Everyone tried to convince her why they were the best. She finally settled for a short, grey-haired man. He seemed trustworthy because he was not as aggressive as the others. As he helped her with her luggage, Irene explained why she had come to Arusha. The stubby gentleman assured her that Maasai homesteads were not too far from the airport. However, she needed a plan because herdsmen are unpredictable and hostile to strangers. It was appalling that a local was quite judgmental about his fellow countrymen. “I decided to keep my opinions to myself," asserted this brave spirit. She finally arrived in the land of her dreams. The taxi man spoke a language which she later learnt was Kiswahili to the Maasai men. It seemed like one of the men who came to meet them was a person of repute. After exchanging phone numbers, the driver departed from the group. Apprehension and excitement overwhelmed Irene as she tried to explain the reason for her visit through a translator. Contrary to what the driver had told her about the Maasai people, this elder appreciated her interest in their culture and even invited her for dinner at his home. He warned that they would have to walk a long distance before they got there. The translator asked Irene to use a dirt bike, but she would here none of it. She wanted an unadulterated experience of the tribal culture. What was the point of coming so far and then imposing one’s lifestyle on others? After a lengthy, rough and uncomfortable walk, the group arrived at the elder’s home. Most of the land was covered with grass, although one could see a few houses clustered over the landscape. The elder had three wives and numerous children. “I could never forget that first interaction with the children.” Irene pondered. “It was almost as if I was a creature from outer space. They stared at me for as long as they could until I somehow caught their eye. Their parents shared the same fascination; it was just that they did a better job of disguising it.” As a guest in their home, Irene was given a hot meal of cornmeal and meat. She soon realized that the Maasai loved beef as much as she did. This foreigner was humbled by their hospitality. All members were extremely kind; she even got a whole room to myself. In their homes, most native tribesmen invested in land or cattle; their houses were not elaborate at all (Gilbert, 2007). “Westerners can learn a lot from these people’s sense of values.” Irene noted. “They only focused on real wealth; the obsession with consumerism in our country seemed absurd after this encounter." “Most of the locals treated my host like a chief of sorts. Since he was wealthy man, in their standards, I still needed to sample the life of typical Maasai people. I made my intentions known to the elder through the translator. His family halfheartedly bid me farewell the next morning” explained Irene. The Lasenyans were a modest family with only a handful of cattle and goats under their name. They lived in a manyatta, which had a mud wall covered with little patches of cloth. There is very little room to move about in these structures and for tall people like Irene, the feat is even more daunting. Further, the flies can indulge visitors in an infuriating dancing game. This community often prefers to sit outside, under a tree, if there is one. “I encouraged Mrs. Lasenyan to continue her usual routine because I only had two weeks to learn as much I could about them.” Irene added. “I accompanied the woman to a distant rivulet, and then helped her prepare food. We take so many things for granted in our country. These women spend six hours a day accessing water. Most of it was dirty and difficult to collect. We had to use little jars to fill up our jerry cans. The Maasai women made a mockery of my gym classes. They impressively carried two twenty-little containers on their heads and hands. I could barely handle ten liters and the aches and pains on my arms were proof of this.” The Maasai staple was cornmeal and meat (Briggs, 2009). However, sometimes meat was unavailable, so the Lasenyans had to make do with native vegetables. Roles were clearly defined among men and women. In fact, women were only allowed to eat after the head of the home had finished his meal. Irene told them about equality in her society and couples’ responsibility to share duties. The Lasenyans simply laughed at this notion. She found that having such strict gender roles strengthened their identity. Some days were more fruitful than others. When the family ran out of cornmeal, they survived on a cup of tea and vegetables. Their resourcefulness was something out of this world. Maasai children were respectful, cheerful and polite regardless of their circumstances. Mr. and Mrs. Lasenyan never complained. In this community, Irene discovered something that no motivational class could ever teach me; the value of contentment. References Briggs, P., 2009. Northern Tanzania: The Bradt Safari Guide with Kilimanjaro and Zanzibar. Buckinghamshire: Bradt Travel Guides. Conley, D., and Stephen, L., 2006. The Daily Miracle: An Introduction to Journalism. New York: Longman. Gilbert, E., 2007. The tribes of the Great Rift Valley. Nairobi: Harry Abrams. Kohn, A., 2006. Unconditional parenting: moving from rewards and punishments to love and reason. Washington: Atria Books. Williams, T., 2009. Publish your own magazine, guide book, or weekly newspaper. Boulder, CO: Sentient Publications. Read More