Friday, July 09, 2004
I GOT MY CONFIDENCE BACK
Getting fired in front of a lot of people is tough. I'm not saying literally, but I think most people know now that I was released from my obligation. I mean, really...imagine yourself being fired in front of perhaps a thousand people, most of whom you never met personally...it's very tough. It hurts in a couple of ways.
1. I don't get to explain to anyone LIVE and most people will find out slowly when they realize the show isn't on anymore. I get a mess of emails all wondering why I left, what happened, am I sick, did I die in a car crash, what the hell is going on? And all I can do is simply say, "They decided to move in a different direction"
2. People who liked the show will think I abandoned them because most people won't take the time to ask. They'll think I'm distant and don't value them enough to say goodbye, because they don't understand the nature of the radio business.
3. People who may not have liked the show or the opinion within the show will cheer the news and claim victory for themselves. Perhaps because they've lost many logical arguments on some policy issue.
My wife and I have been having a rough time of it figuring out our next move. Should I leave radio? Move home? Go down a peg in what I can/will do in my career? I mean, we are in a very rough spot...financially and medically. Sure, I got a severence, but my wife is at 7-months and we have a car payment, mortgage, COBRA health insurance will be more than the mortgage, food, another baby...the pressure is incredible. My wife has had a difficult pregnancy too...post partum depression last time around and all the stress this past week has put her in a situation where we need to get her some long-term care. She checked into a facility today.
I even went so far as to put a DONATION button on the homepage. Silly, isn't it? It took me 5-hours to do it...10-seconds of actual programming time, and 4-hours 50-minutes to consider what people would think if I did. So here's my spin and I'm sticking to it:
I can better help the economy and George W Bush by keeping my name off the list the media loves to read on the news: "First time filings for unemployment benefits shot up last month..."
So I lost my confidence for a while. It's back today, though. I got my first call-back for a job opportunity and it looks pretty good at this point. Very encouraging, especially when you consider where it is - location-wise, it's close. I'd be able to manage driving back and forth on weekends while my wife stays here to tend the house and the doctor and for the birth of the new baby. Eventually, we won't have far to move when the situation gets better.
Wish me luck. I'll keep in touch.
Getting fired in front of a lot of people is tough. I'm not saying literally, but I think most people know now that I was released from my obligation. I mean, really...imagine yourself being fired in front of perhaps a thousand people, most of whom you never met personally...it's very tough. It hurts in a couple of ways.
1. I don't get to explain to anyone LIVE and most people will find out slowly when they realize the show isn't on anymore. I get a mess of emails all wondering why I left, what happened, am I sick, did I die in a car crash, what the hell is going on? And all I can do is simply say, "They decided to move in a different direction"
2. People who liked the show will think I abandoned them because most people won't take the time to ask. They'll think I'm distant and don't value them enough to say goodbye, because they don't understand the nature of the radio business.
3. People who may not have liked the show or the opinion within the show will cheer the news and claim victory for themselves. Perhaps because they've lost many logical arguments on some policy issue.
My wife and I have been having a rough time of it figuring out our next move. Should I leave radio? Move home? Go down a peg in what I can/will do in my career? I mean, we are in a very rough spot...financially and medically. Sure, I got a severence, but my wife is at 7-months and we have a car payment, mortgage, COBRA health insurance will be more than the mortgage, food, another baby...the pressure is incredible. My wife has had a difficult pregnancy too...post partum depression last time around and all the stress this past week has put her in a situation where we need to get her some long-term care. She checked into a facility today.
I even went so far as to put a DONATION button on the homepage. Silly, isn't it? It took me 5-hours to do it...10-seconds of actual programming time, and 4-hours 50-minutes to consider what people would think if I did. So here's my spin and I'm sticking to it:
I can better help the economy and George W Bush by keeping my name off the list the media loves to read on the news: "First time filings for unemployment benefits shot up last month..."
So I lost my confidence for a while. It's back today, though. I got my first call-back for a job opportunity and it looks pretty good at this point. Very encouraging, especially when you consider where it is - location-wise, it's close. I'd be able to manage driving back and forth on weekends while my wife stays here to tend the house and the doctor and for the birth of the new baby. Eventually, we won't have far to move when the situation gets better.
Wish me luck. I'll keep in touch.
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