OKRadioGuy said:
Hey everyone...I work at a station here in Oklahoma...for various reasons I won't get into here, I'm looking to get out of the business. I'm not happy anymore and when it loses its fun, there's no reason to just go through the motions and do bad radio, right?
Anyway, while I want to get out the thought scares the hell out of me. Radio is all I've known my whole working life and to abandon it and start a new career path is a frightening prospect. This leads me to my question: Those of you that are no longer in radio for whatever reason, do you find that once you left you were happier? Do you still miss it and want to get back in or are you relieved you don't have to put up with all the craziness and BS this business brings about sometimes? If you left voluntarily, do you regret the decision? Thanks for your time.
Having happily left the business forever, there are a couple of things I'd suggest you consider:
The first is the future of the business itself. I remember years and years of efforts to "save" AM radio. Remember "AM stereo"? The truth is, though, that technology and consumer behavior had evolved, and left AM radio behind. Despite over 15 years of an industry-wide effort, with millions of dollars poured into that effort, most AM radio stations in this country have gone dark. FM radio is going through a similar process. Less and less people use radio every day, for less time, and radio ad dollars are progressively being diverted to new media. As technology and consumer behavior continue to evolve, that trend will only continue. I don't think radio will ever go completely away, but things will continue to change in that business, and not for the better. The only way operators will be able to respond to shrinking audiences and revenues is to continue to embrace technologies that allow them to operate at lower costs. It is inevitable.
Still, there will be people who will have rewarding careers in this new radio landscape. It's going to come down to adaptability; the ability to embrace change, and make it work for you. You have to be honest with yourself and take a dispassionate look at both the business, and yourself. If you're not the kind of person who can adapt, the next question is, can you become that adaptable person?
Second, leaving the business is a decision that should not be made quickly. It needs to be a process, and before coming to that conclusion, you need to remember that often the more familiar you are with something, the uglier it is to you. It is easy to become so overwhelmed with the negatives of something that you lose all appreciation for the good parts of it. Carry a pad around with you and take note of at least one thing you like about your job/career each day for a month. Think about them a lot. Then, at the end of that month, take a few hours and really look at both the positives and negatives. Go through the process with someone whose opinion you trust. if you still feel you have to get away, then it's probably time for a change. What you don't want is to think back years down the road and regret the decision you made. I'm fortunate that I never have, although I do still sometimes wax nostalgic about my Sunday night disco show.
Third, you need to have a plan. Just because you've decided you need to make a change doesn't mean you need to do it right away. If you don't have a marketable skill, you need to get one. Research careers you think you might be interested in. Take vacation time and go work for free for a bit in things that interest you. I know how satisfying it is to tell that a$$hole GM to go **** himself, but if you don't walk out the door straight into your new (better) career, you lose, not him.
I did none of this, by the way. It was total luck that I found poker. I'd never go back; I've politely, but immediately passed on every opportunity to get back into the business that's come up, but everyone knows the 44th Rule of Acquisition: Never Confuse Wisdom With Luck.
Good Fortune!
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