Tell me why do I do this?!?
A topic from a regular reader:
I'm an avid Gen J reader, and I recently had an interesting e-mail
conversation with a former professor who was asking me about my career
and sort of where to go from my first job. I'm not on the hunt or
anything, but I am nearing the anniversary of when I started. She
asked a series of questions for reflection, and when I shared them
with some friends, they all had interesting takes.
I wondered if you'd like to blog about it to see what SPJ'ers think.
And if not, maybe they'll just help you find focus as well:
"So, what is journalism to you? A career? A job ladder? A mission? A
calling? Who do you do it for?? Yourself? The community? The company?
Maybe clarifying this will help you figure out where you want to go."
-- Susan Brockus, California State University, Chico.
Take care,
First Draft reader (name excluded)
Well, reader, thanks for reading! And - a big thanks for the question.
For me, journalism is a calling and something I do for the community and myself.
To be more specific, I feel drawn to the profession (I'm an A++++ personality, a multi-tasker and someone who likes learning about many different topics). I practice journalism for the community (to provide factual, unbiased information so the public can make decisions based on those facts - rather than slanted information). I also practice journalism for myself - mainly because I get to learn about so many different things and I get to meet many different people (which keeps my brain quite occupied).
So please, everyone, chime in with your own answers! And, send in your questions for us too!