Why I quit my job

Kai is an old friend of mine. I haven't seen him since he left for Quebec when he had accepted this position.

I encourage people to read his follow-up post, where he describes the huge media reaction (positive and negative) to his original blog post: http://kainagata.com/2011/07/09/a-lot-can-happen-in-24-hour/

I wish Kai the best on his journey, and the next steps in his life, whatever they may be.

One of the ideas that resonated with me was how he describes "it was what I would qualify as a “great job,” especially for a 24-year old" and that he was "a full-time employee making good money" and "people were willing to trade me a lot of money" and yet he ends with "I’m broke, and yet I know I’m rich in love. I’m unemployed and homeless".

I'm also 24 years old and I had the same perspective toward my current job, but I didn't turn out as rich as I had planned either. The naivety of youth can be so blinding. Sure, we'll both be better men from the growth and lessons learned, but it sure wasn't what was planned.

Best and quotable sentence:

  [...] the target viewer, according to consultants, is
  also supposed to like easy stories that reinforce beliefs
  they already hold.

Yep. People don't like to be told they are wrong or that things are not always as simple as black and white. That's the reason politicians lie before elections and for media to broadcast dumb stories to survive. Facts of life.

Politics is a continuous flight of the egoists against the idealists. If the later quit, the former win.

A choice quote for me was:

"I’m trying to think of the reporters ... who feel so strongly about the importance and social value of the evening news that, were they were offered somewhere to sleep, three meals a day, and free dry-cleaning – they would do that for the rest of their days"

It sounds similar to how passionately people work for startups, and I was wondering if there were any "indie" news orgs where such journalists could work.

Interesting read. I had no idea things were getting so tough over in Canada. You hear some things across the border to the U.S. but unless you're actively seeking news you won't hear much.

It's almost never the wrong decision to try something new.