There is an age-old saying that “change is good”. It is good when you decide to move from one job to another that offers more security, better pay or benefits. Or when you find and can afford that dream home in a better neighborhood, with the modern, airy kitchen and nearby park that your kids will love. Change is good then. Imagine, though the change of millions of residents living along the Louisiana and Mississippi Gulf Coast in August, 2005. Families learning of a hurricane brewing in the Gulf of Mexico and being told to leave the comfort of their home to get out its way. And they do, as they may have done in advance of previous storms. Only this one, called Katrina, destroys in ways unimaginable, flooding and ravaging the better part of New Orleans, a city accustomed to storms, but never anything like this. She redefined the term NATURAL DISASTER.
The affected areas, from New Orleans to Pascagoula, are still reeling from the loss of lives and property. From the professional standpoint, though, the storm forced many to recalibrate and reconsider how they would support themselves and their families. Along with the pictures of the damage and destruction to homes, hotels, and landmarks, media outlets told countless stories of those who, instead of packing it in, found ways to make things work. It was nothing for a customer to have their groceries bagged by the attorney whose practice when belly up after the storm. Or the accountant who waited tables because his firm’s office and bottom line were obliterated by Katrina. Assuming those men and women would resign themselves to those new job titles, never to return to their professions, would be delusional. Many of them took the hand dealt to them and worked it. They found ways to survive while regrouping to meet challenges of daily life of the times, like rebuilding their homes and meeting financial commitments, all while doing whatever it took to make their way back to their vocations as barristers and bean counters. Be it workforce reduction, or devastating hurricane, the bottom line is you must meet and manage the challenges brought on by change and work it to your advantage.
Skip Harrison’s only connection to Hurricane Katrina comes from the stories he’s heard from relatives who live in New Orleans, and from the images he saw as a journalist living in the Northeast. Ask him about the trials that come with change in the workplace and how to manage it, and he lets it flow. “The news business is as competitive as it is objective, so no one is above being replaced”, he says. Skip saw an entire production crew get the ax in a network TV operation, “all because the news managers visited a smaller news outfit and saw one man operate four videotape machines, and run the robotic studio cameras with a joystick.” “I remember wondering ‘how are those guys gonna eat?’ Pretty soon, the competitors began whittling down their staffs. Skip was eventually laid off from his writing and producing job in the career he dreamed of achieving since he was a kid. “I was devastated”, he says, “but I had to find a way to meet my financial commitments and survive until I could get back in the stream of the news business, plus keep my skills sharp for when I get back into the news game”. After telling a friend he was laid off, he reminded Skip of a quote by Albert Einstein. “It was ‘in chaos, there is opportunity’. I took that and ran with it.” Skip offers some advice for those suddenly called to ride out and navigate through changes in their professional lives:
Don’t Give Up
Skip values the support from his family in his career pursuits. “My grandmother has a Bible quote for everything”, he says, “but this time, after I was laid off for the first time in my life, she didn’t share a scripture. She said ‘Baby, don’t throw in the towel.’ I’ve never been so motivated by something so simplistic. To this day, whenever I’m faced with a challenge that seems insurmountable, I remember those words, not because I’ve heard them when interviewing a boxer, or from a coach who may have used the same line in a post-game interview. Because of what she said, I can never quit”.
Keep Up with the Times
“Everything in television news changes with the blink of an eye,” Skip says. “From the way people speak on air, to the cameras and equipment used to gather news and send it over the air”. “The writing style I learned in college and from seasoned writers who mentored me is becoming stale”, Skip says. “It’s being replaced in print and television by hipper, more modern language that mirrors popular culture. The kind of stuff you hear on ESPN”. To maintain his writing skills, Skip used many resources. “I did everything, from turning newspaper articles into 30 second news scripts like I was writing a newscast to listening more closely to my favorite hip-hop cuts to make sure I could blend catch phrases into a news script when the chance came. I had to make sure I was ready, just like a sixth man on a basketball team“.
Choose Your Opportunities Wisely
When he was laid off, Skip says his greatest challenge was being able to find opportunities that would allow him to meet his financial commitments, and work in environments where he could utilize those same skills essential in the broadcast realm. Says Skip, “I took jobs, like substitute teaching, where I could speak to groups of people and use my creative writing skills. I was fortunate to also satisfy my aspiration to mentor young people at the same time”. He landed a job with a non-profit organization, creating enrichment activities for young people. “What made it so cool was that the kids were interested in creating video projects from their activities. Right up my alley”.
Debra W. Gould, MS, president and CEO of Debra Gould & Associates, Inc., provides management consulting and training service. Her books Together, Making Your Marriage Work from the Start, and Sister Together: Lessons Learned That Have Anchored Our Souls! For more information, visit www.gouldassoc.com
|
