I'm ready to take a different step in my journalism career. ... But how?
I've been fortunate to rise fast to a top job at a midsize newspaper. Most people above and below are good partners in the journey -- and a big part of why I am where I am. I also like to believe that my energy, creativity and work ethic are part of the equation. I'm lucky to be surrounded by good people who I'm tasked with pushing to their limits. It's been interesting work, but the opportunity to focus on journalism is declining. It isn't as much fun as it was.
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I'm ready to realign my life and return to a job where chasing the headlines of the hour/day and the news package of the week ends in a rush of adrenaline. That ethic helped earn me the spot I have, but returning to that old job isn't really an option. A job search could take a year, and I don't want to alarm my subordinates needlessly. Nor is my company friendly toward people who are looking to leave.
The first things recruiters ask are salary expectations, and their questions indicate they think I'm being forced out. Adding to the stress, I am so busy with work and family I don't really have time to be a good job seeker.
I'm not interested in working less, just working focused on what I love doing.
The Mid-Career Job Candidate
It sounds as though you want to leave your job, though not necessarily your company. Have you explored how they might engineer a return to the trenches for you? You would retain seniority and maybe even your pay. That's Option One.
Option Two might be a move to online. I have never seen so much adrenaline as when people move from a 24-hour cycle to one that is continuous and instantaneous. Would that work for you? As an editor, you already have 90 percent of the qualifications for the job, and learning the remaining 10 percent would make you more marketable.
If you must leave the paper, get past the recruiter and establish some confidential relationships with hiring managers that you can build on over time -- a year or so -- rather than to go after jobs where you are a relative stranger and have to knock someone over with interview, critiques and all the hurdles that must be cleared in very short time bursts.
Coming Wednesday: After a year in his professional program, this writer feels he may be better off in the deadline business than in the dental business.
