On Sept. 28, I announced via Facebook and Twitter that after five years of working as a reporter for a North Carolina newspaper, I was laid off. I’d like to say I was surprised but I’d be lying. Newspapers have been struggling since I was a college student. It seems the industry never really found its footing in this online world of constant updates and information.
As a trained journalist, I spotted the trends. I saw how my counterparts in other markets at larger papers were losing their jobs. I saw how newspaper journalists were going back to school in droves to learn more about different aspects of the news business. I saw how they were going back to change careers altogether. Yet, I stayed. I stayed because I was hoping journalism would take a turn and go back to the way I learned it. I stayed because I still believed in what good journalism could mean for local people and communities. And let’s be honest, I stayed because it’s what I have been trained to do and it’s what I know how to do.
When I graduated in 2003, I always intended to give this career 10 years. I always said 10 years is plenty to do all the things I want and had I stuck to my initial plan, it probably would have been. When I graduated college, my plan was to get all the experience I could that would lead me to a major metro to study at the feet of my favorite columnist, Cynthia Tucker. I was going to cover everything a newspaper had to offer from politics to business to education all to equip me to be the most well-rounded member of her editorial board.
Well, in my eight years as a full-time journalist, I covered public safety, politics, education, community news and general assignments. The only thing I didn’t do is cover business or take any real steps toward becoming an editorial writer. Sure I wrote columns, had a lot of fun doing them, too, but I realized a few years ago, that wasn’t my path. Honestly, I realized a couple of years ago that being a life-long journalist wasn’t my path either.
A lot of people thrive on the hustle and bustle of the newsroom. I’m not one of them. My passion is in helping people and telling stories and I’ve found that I can do that anywhere, in any job. While dealing with being laid off has been hard, I realize that I would never have taken any steps forward to find and pursue my true passion as long as I had the stability of going to a job every day.
I have no reason to be bitter about being laid off. I learned a lot at that newspaper and I met some great people. I am actually grateful for this layoff. It has given me the push I need to make some decisions and get some things done. I won’t lie and say it’s been a great experience, but, I can see now that this is not the worst. I’m trying to get excited about my future.
What about y’all? Ever been laid off? Tell me about it!
