Over the past few months, the ZAlebs team has received a number of requests from readers wanting to become ZAlebs presenters. While we would love to have you all as presenters, unfortunately, that’s not how things work in the media business.

While we do hope to bring on board aspiring presenters one day, we believe it is crucial that you consider a few things before you attempt to enter the industry.

To help you with your journey, here are some of those important factors to consider and adopt in order to become a successful presenter.

Understand your material, audience, and producers.

An understanding between two parties is important in whatever you do. If there’s a misunderstanding, this could potentially lead to the demise of your career - especially when it comes to those producing your work. As a presenter, you should also be interested and involved in the subject you are presenting, and have a good understanding of the audience. By doing this, it helps you to engage with the viewers a whole lot better.

Are you eager?

To the audience, presenting often looks like the easiest and most fun job on earth. While it can be, that is not always the case. There are days you need to spend endless hours putting in work at events. Are you prepared to sacrifice your weekends and days off for presenting gigs that take hours? It’s also not only about being in front of the camera, it’s also about being a team player - from helping your crew carry equipment to approaching celebrities who are not always keen on attention. From the outside looking in, it may seem glamorous, but in reality, it's a lot of hard work.

Patience and the right attitude!

This is the type of job that requires a great amount of energy and a positive mentality. There are times you’re going to stumble over your links and repeat lines countless times at 22h00, whilst half of the country is a sleep. As tedious as it may sound, you need to remain positive and do your job with a smile. Throwing tantrums and being a diva won’t get you far.

You’re NOT a celebrity!

Yes, as you work in an entertainment environment you could easily find yourself becoming big-headed and consider yourself to be a celebrity. News flash, you're not! You're just like any other broadcast journalist doing their job. If you’re eager to be a presenter with an end goal of wanting to be a celebrity, maybe this is not the job for you. Please don't be that dude or chick!