By Chris Harrison

Libaan Osman

From a young age, Libaan Osman knew he wanted to be a journalist. In middle school, he went on a field trip to a writing workshop. At the workshop, he wrote about LeBron James, his favorite basketball player, and received encouragement and support from the leader of the workshop, then-Toronto Star sports reporter Morgan Campbell.

Osman hadn’t loved school but after the workshop, he caught the writing bug. He started writing freelance for sports blogs while still in high school before enrolling in the Toronto Metropolitan University journalism program and, eventually, wound up at the Toronto Star. 

“It felt like a full-circle moment, working at the place where my mentor, the person who got me into journalism, used to work.” said Osman. “It felt like where I needed to be. Even to this day, I get advice about pitching, navigating sources, or ideas. We’re constantly just chatting about the industry,” he said. A first-time NABJ convention attendee this year, Osman said he plans on attending every year from now on. He reflected on the mentorship and supportive atmosphere at a panel on longform writing he attended:

“I like longform writing a lot and you get to talk to editors and…it’s just a constant dialogue,” he said. “Oftentimes, I would feel afraid to raise my hand and ask a question in a normal setting, but at the NABJ, everyone looks like you. Everyone wants you to succeed. You don’t have to second-guess yourself like ‘Am I supposed to be here?’ There’s so much knowledge. I have so many notes that I look back on and I’m like ‘wow.’”

The openness and genuine friendliness of his fellow attendees left an impression on him. “I remember waiting outside the job fair area and I didn’t know anybody there and all of a sudden I have three, four conversations with random people,” he said. “Everyone wanting to know your story and who you are, that was kind of surprising to me.” 

For first-time convention goers, Osman advises chatting with anybody and everybody you come across: “I remember chatting with one person who told me ‘this is the place where you belong. This is the place where everybody wants to see you win’ and even if [their area of specialty] isn’t your interest, go up to the most random news outlets because you don’t know, they might have an opportunity that might fit you. It could lead to an opportunity that could lead to another opportunity.” 

He also advises using LinkedIn as a means of keeping in touch with recruiters and hiring managers and making sure your page is up-to-date and best represents you and your experience. 

“Shout-out to the fellowship program.” said Osman “I don’t think we’ll realize it now, but five years down the line, this fellowship program will change lives. It’s because they came together and they saw that it was needed for us to be there and in front of decision makers…I’ll talk about this experience for the rest of my life.”

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