To succeed as an investigative journalist you may have to cultivate your hunter instinct. At first all you may have is a whiff of a possible story, nothing at all concrete.
But as you follow that scent, something deep inside takes over and you can tell when you are the trail of your prey, when the trail has gone cold, and how you can pick it up again.
It's great exercise for your brain, which is hard-wired for this kind of work from millennia of our species hunting as a means of survival.
During my career in journalism, many people told me they considered me a mentor, somebody they could approach for advice about the hunt, especially about which tactics to use and how to find the trail when it goes missing.
Of course, by asking they in turn became my mentors, whether they realized that or not. But I happily play the mentor role with people to this day. And I also know that something’s missing in the process -- both for them and for me. Because succeeding in one more hunt is not necessarily going to satisfy the hunter over the long run.
What I'm talking about is the damage you do to yourself along the way, and this goes way beyond journalism to anybody who pursues a career that involves pursuit.
Put simply, we want and we need more than that kind of success when inevitably we finally confront our own mortality.
When it comes to our private needs, a hunter is not going to find what (s)he needs by following her brain. Logical ability, pattern-recognition skill, the discipline to close the deal -- none of that will bring happiness or peace.
To attain those, you have to listen to your heart.
And once you confront this dilemma, you know longer can belong to your career or even the life you have built around it. You have to venture somewhere deeper, scarier, someplace that may feel like uncharted territory.
You have to belong to your dreams.
(The first version of this one was in 2021.)
HEADLINES:
Unmarked Vans. Secret Lists. Public Denunciations. Our Police State Has Arrived. (NYT)
Dow drops 1,500 as US stocks lead worldwide sell-off after Trump’s tariffs ignite a COVID-like shock (AP)
Trump announces 10 percent tariffs on all imports, additional taxes for some 60 countries (WP)
A Future of High Prices (Atlantic)
Trump's reciprocal tariffs announcement could shake up global trade (NBC)
Musk’s defeat in Wisconsin is a flashing warning for Republicans in 2026 (WP)
The MAGA Backlash Arrives (WSJ)
Wisconsin and Florida special elections provide early warning signs to Trump, Republicans (PBS)
White House studying cost of Greenland takeover, long in Trump’s sights (WP)
HHS layoffs hit Meals on Wheels and other services for seniors and disabled (NPR)
US health agency layoffs gut mine safety, infertility and smoking programs (Guardian)
HHS sees day of chaos as layoffs hit scientists, policy experts (Axios)
Farmers bewildered after USDA suggests cutting DEI from energy projects (WP)
Musk could be headed for a Washington exit after turbulent times at Trump's DOGE (AP)
Mayor Eric Adams' case dismissed with prejudice despite Trump admin's request to allow for later prosecution (ABC)
Israel announces expansion of military operation in Gaza to seize ‘large areas’ of land, ordering residents to leave (CNN)
Russia ‘Cannot’ Accept U.S. Ceasefire Proposal in Ukraine, Deputy FM Says (Moscow Times)
Travel Cancellations Surge as US Faces New Decline in Tourism: Canada, Western Europe, and Mexico See Increased Interest in Alternative Destinations (Travel and Tour World)
Gen Z’s Safe Space (Business Insider)
Apple rolls out Priority Notifications as Apple Intelligence expands to EU (TechCrunch)
The Limits of A.I.-Generated Miyazaki (New Yorker)
Wealthy Teen Nearly Experiences Consequence (The Onion)
VIDEO:
No comments:
Post a Comment