For every single woman who works in sports, there is a different story. However, one commonality that these stories have is they all have an internship story. Internships allow people to step into the world of sports and in many cases, solidify the decision to enter a career working in the sports industry. This is the case with Colorado Avalanche media intern, Makena Megson, who I had the opportunity to interview. This is her story of working in sports, what she hopes for her future, and advice she has for women who want to work in sports.
Megson explained that she grew up playing volleyball and soccer, so she was always involved with sports. Though she enjoyed these sports, she never had a desire to pursue college athletics. Her love for sports comes from going to Colorado Eagles, Colorado’s American Hockey League team, games since she was young. Megson explained that going to the Eagles’ games brought her a lot of happiness, even when she was at her lowest. That is why when she found out the AHL team offered internships, she jumped on the opportunity.
Megson explained that she grew up playing volleyball and soccer, so she was always involved with sports. Though she enjoyed these sports, she never had a desire to pursue college athletics. Her love for sports comes from going to Colorado Eagles, Colorado’s American Hockey League team, games since she was young. Megson explained that going to the Eagles’ games brought her a lot of happiness, even when she was at her lowest. That is why when she found out the AHL team offered internships, she jumped on the opportunity.
Megson entered college with no idea of what she wanted to do. She had always enjoyed photography, but wasn’t sure if that was the route she would take. When she found the media internship opportunity for the Colorado Eagles, she jumped on the chance to see if working in sports was what she wanted to do. She has since completed an Associate’s Degree in Digital Communication and Media/Multimedia. Since starting the internship with the Eagles this last season, Megson moved on to intern for the Colorado Avalanche, Colorado’s NHL team. Megson discussed that her first boss is one of her greatest influences because she showed Megson how to be confident and encouraged her as she grew and moved on to her job with the Avalanche.
When I asked what a day in her life looked like for Megson, she said it depends on the day. She explained that she starts each week in a team meeting where the social media team plans out content for the week. They go over any special events or guests that will need to be covered and create a plan for the week. On a game day, Megson is constantly running, whether she is taking arrival photos which she quickly uploads, edits, and sends to her team to be posted, taking pictures of warmups from the bench, or running to get pictures of special guests or events. She spends game days taking photos from around the arena, editing them, and preparing them to be posted. She realized that she wanted to work in sports the minute she was given creative freedom in one of her first games, where she was told to take photographs of the players and game with no true direction, allowing her to develop her style and skills.
Megson discussed the role TikTok has had in helping her grow as a photographer. She finds it extremely helpful to growing her portfolio and allows her to showcase her work. She has also been able to use her platform to reach many who want to work in sports and to form connections with others in the same role, some of whom are her mentors. When I asked if she thought that content creators were important for the success of teams and sports, she said definitely. It is important for people to use the resources available to spread their love for sports and really show the community that exists.
When asked what advice Megson has for people who want to work in the sports industry, this is what she said.
Fake it till you make it! You may feel like you have no clue what you are doing, but you need to pretend until you develop the skills you already possess in order to become successful.
Have confidence! Confidence is key when working in any industry, especially the sports industry. If you carry yourself with confidence, you will be able to do anything you put your mind to.
Find your voice! In order to be creative, you must be able to voice your opinion and be confident in it.
Megson is only an intern, but she hopes to one day work full time in sports media and would love to stay in hockey. Like so many women who find themselves working in sports, her story starts with an internship and it will be exciting to see where she goes from here. You can keep up with her journey of working in the sports industry by viewing her portfolio and following her on Instagram, TikTok, and LinkedIn.
All photos are Courtesy of Makena Megson (Instagram)
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