By Cameron Woolley and Jeff Oliver
woolley@newsroom.byu.edu
Celebrated BYU alumna Jane Clayson returned to her alma mater Thursday with a promise for students willing to work hard.
Clayson, who graduated from BYU in 1990, has spent the last 11 years ascending the ranks of broadcast journalists. She is currently co-host of 'The Early Show' opposite Bryant Gumbel.
It is a position Clayson said she never aspired to.
In a speech delivered Thursday to communication students in the Madsen Recital Hall, Clayson reminded the audience of what she was before anyone knew her -- a volunteer KBYU reporter, who mostly did weather reports.
Clayson advised students to work hard and to find a mentor -- 'someone who can help you, advise you and put their arm around you.'
Though Clayson described her 'journey' as 'incredible,' she said it has not been easy.
In an intimate interview with NewsNet following her speech, she offered a glimpse into her life as a major figure in network television.
She said she typically gets up between 3:45 a.m. and 4:00 a.m.
Clayson said she reads three or four papers before meeting with producers about the day's show. From then on -- aside from a small afternoon break, which she treasures -- Clayson said she immerses herself in the job she loves.
'It is an incredible opportunity, and I know people would kill for this job, and I'm happy to have it. I love it, but it doesn't define my life. It doesn't define who I am,' she said.
Though Clayson said she has not faced a lot of negativity in her new position, still she has learned to deal with public criticism.
'You can't let the accolades define you because the critics will destroy you,' she said.
In the midst of the criticism, she finds steady ground with two or three people whose opinions and advice she trusts, she said.
'Then I just go do my job everyday to the best of my ability and let whatever is said be said,' she said.
She laughed about a tabloid that reported her co-host Bryant Gumbel running after her as she cried her way to her dressing room.
The story was fabricated. Clayson said her dressing room hadn't even been built.
Elder Neil A. Maxwell of the Quorum of the Twelve counseled Clayson before she accepted her job.
She said he reminded her of what she would need to remember as a public figure.
'There are a lot of myths about Mormon faith and Mormon people,' she said. 'I don't consider myself, in a professional sense, any different than anyone else who works (on the show).'
Clayson said she keeps family at the top of her priority list.
'Because that is something I have not been blessed with now doesn't mean it's not to come, and I look forward to those days,' she said.
Until then, she said she plans to let her light shine and focus on her opportunity: 'And go forward,' she said.