Kristin Malia - Find Your Why & Don’t Ever Forget What Is Driving You To Tell A Story, The Truth (Journalist, USA)

 

Keep going no matter what, especially if you’re having trouble finding what your passion is. It’s not easy. If you are lucky enough to know, keep going! If you don’t know, keep searching. You will find it. Stay open as your calling may not look like what you’ve been imagining. And let me say it one more time, KEEP GOING.  

1. Tell us about your background and journey.

I was born in Honolulu, Hawaii and raised in Southern California (LA area). I was always a fly-by-the-seat-of-my-pants kind of a girl who played sports throughout most of my school years. I had no idea what I wanted to do once I graduated high school. 

When forced to pick my major in college at CSUN, I chose Broadcast Journalism. Why? Well, I did so because I liked to write, there was no math & it had the least amount of units required to graduate. If I put it any other way, I would be lying ;) I really just wanted to graduate and get a degree. 

I had no idea how much value my experience in college would carry over into my real life & how my journalism background would impact how I communicate even in my personal life. 

There are two sides to every story and if you watched the “news” today you wouldn’t know that to be true. If I had to go back and do it all over again, I would still pick Broadcast Journalism as my major.

2. Who is your favourite journalist and why?

Sadly, I don’t have one at this time. I’ve seen journalism evolve into tabloid and entertainment. I don’t even recognize many of the mainstream journalists as actual journalists, they are more like opinionated and passionate performers. 

That being said, I respect the job of all journalists & understand this is not an easy time to be a hard news reporter, anchor or host. I have heard a lot of rave reviews about some independent journalists and I’m starting to pay more attention to them.

3. What is your message to all aspiring journalists?

Find your why & don’t ever forget what is driving you to tell a story, the truth, etc. And keep going no matter what. You are going to have challenges of all kinds and you will most likely hear a lot of “no’s”. Don’t be discouraged, it’s just part of the journey. If you keep going, you will make it.

4. If you could interview one famous person, who would that be and why?

I was a full-time entertainment host/reporter & producer for E! Entertainment Television for close to a decade so I’ve interviewed endless famous celebrities. The experience was amazing and I’m so grateful to have had that opportunity so the famous person isn’t an actor or musician. 

Today, I would love to sit down with Joel Osteen. I am not a religious person but he captured my attention years ago with his message of hope and inspiration. I find him inspiring so it would be great to have a 1 on 1 with him.

5. What place is top of your bucket list?

West Africa and other surrounding areas of Africa 

6. Your message for people who want to make their passion their profession.

Keep going no matter what, especially if you’re having trouble finding what your passion is. It’s not easy. If you are lucky enough to know, keep going! If you don’t know, keep searching. 

You will find it. Stay open as your calling may not look like what you’ve been imagining. And let me say it one more time, KEEP GOING. You only fail if you give up.

7. Which is your favourite book and why?

The Diving Bell & The Butterfly--It’s a true story of a man whose life was changed in an instant. He was driving when his vision started to get blurry & soon after he was in the hospital in a coma. He had a stroke and suffered from “locked-in-syndrome”. 

He could see, hear and feel pain, but could not speak or move. His journey and what he went through was incredible. He wrote the book with a specialized nurse who he communicated with by “blinking”. 

Itt took 200,000 blinks to complete the book. The author, Jean, was the editor of Elle magazine and his commitment to succeed in writing this book was an inspiration.

- Kristin Malia

- Instagram: Kristin Malia

- Website: Kristin Malia

- Youtube: Kristin Malia

- Interviewed By Pearlina Marie Rein