Ten years gone

It’s been ten years since my last day in television news.

I remember that last story very well. Others, not so much.

I wrote this on my way into the unknown (republished in this form, five years ago.)

And what follows is my response to me.

Ten Years Gone

My open letter to myself, a time capsule in reverse…

Dear Ike…

Yes, you are still Known as “Ike,” even though you’ve been out of television for ten years now. But that’s okay, it just makes it easier to figure out when friends are calling.

(Oh, I suppose this requires some explanation… you will one day write this letter on a flat slab of glass, with a stubby stylus. Sure beats the heck out of live Journal, and at the end this little device will convert your scribbling to text. Because of this thing, you have been paper-free for nearly three years, you Hippie,)

So, you wrote this manifesto on your way out, and I must admit that you were on the money. You got out of television at a very opportune time, Had you gone two years sooner, you would have been locked into some new career path without the flexibility to innovate. If you had waited another year or so, you’d have missed out on the ground floor of an entire class of ground-breaking technologies put it this way… your gastrointestinal tract picked a FANTASTIC time to give out. If only more people listened to their guts…

Anyway, I don’t want this to somehow get back to you and spoil any surprises. But there will be some turmoil:

• prepare for some debt
• get out of it as swiftly as you can
• you’re a skilled networker, even if you never thought of yourself that way, Own it.
• You have excellent colleagues. treat them right, you’ll be blessed with their presence for some time to come
• you are going to mess up. badly. own it and move on.
• you are going to be laid off at some point. it’s okay, things will work out
• Keep writing. And write shorter. #TrustMe
• I won’t tell you what to invest in. Doesn’t matter.
• Okay-invest in people. They do matter.
• You’ll develop a reputation. Don’t hide from it-it won’t be the prison you fear.
• Forgive yourself.

One of the parts that you were right about was it was time to go. Ten Years… 3,653 days… and not a single one where you questioned your decision.

You’ll see New York, Chicago, Miami, San Diego, London, New London, Toronto, Edinburgh, and Atlanta. You will see a lot of Atlanta.

On a personal note, you are still eager and curious. Freed from the daily deadline, you’ll be able to engorge your brain on just about any flavor of information you desire. I will warn you, you are much happier when you balance your news diet, Too many people abuse the privilege of choosing their news, and won’t figure it all out until they hit rock bottom.

By the time I write this, our culture will be in a major shift. The short of it is that Paddy pretty much nailed it in Network, except now there are a dozen Howard Beale’s on every channel, and we’re mad as hell because they are no better than cheerleading astrologists.

(you know, this little tablet thing is going to be very useful… but you still ought to hold out for the second generation.)

Oh, and be prepared to ward off the daily invasion of the trivial. Much of the “news product” is entertainment-focused, and attention spans are degrading. Be the counterbalance, as best you can.

Some things aren’t going to change at all:

• People will still be governed by their irrational fears. (and even worse, they will choose to be governed by opportunistic politicians, who use our irrational fears as a yoke and bit to lead us)
• People will still make bad choices, yet with seemingly diminished consequences.
• People will still be making bad bargains, trading liberty for security,
• People will cling ever closer to class struggle and comparisons, as “Fairness” becomes a more important measure than absolute well-being.
• Pro wrestling will wane in popularity, while zombies ascend. Several famous pro wrestlers will have died. This is just coincidence
• That Saban guy at LSU is going to win a few more BCS titles. Somehow, I think you’ll cope with that, and even learn to revel in it.

There is so much more that you’ll go through over your first decade as a free man, 10 years sober from your broadcast habit. But you’re still the same person. And you’ll almost figure that out one day. And help others figure out their own paths to sobriety, They’ve got their own owing and rowing and growing to do—but it’s nice to know when you’re not the only one leaving the island.

From my perch in the lighthouse…

Isaac