Your kind and gentle hostess here at NewTechZilla has taken a bit of time off from our endeavor here because the inevitable finally happened. I was downsized at my newspaper and according to my publishers, it came down to money.

Scott was very kind in letting me go through the six degrees of seperation and work through some of the things that go along with being laid off. It was not unexpected although it was still shocking. I’ve never been laid off before.

After I reeled through the various emotions that accompany such news, I realized it was time to have a plan, and also a time to take off and breath. Sometimes when the other shoe finally drops, there is a sense of relief as well as a constricting fear of the unknown.

My plan is not so much of a manifesto as that it is to deal with the realities head on. So I made a list:

1. As I’ve never filed unemployment in my life, I am going down that road this month. I have a little money put aside so I’m taking a couple of weeks to figure out what the next road I want to take to and the best journey for me long term.
2. I am not rushing into any decisions. This has been advised to me by a great deal of people. On the other hand, I’ve never been very good around the house so there is that. I know I’m going to get bored very quickly.
3. I am open to any and all opportunities.
4. One thing that I believe is very important for any of us in the journalism field who is confronted with this dilemma is to keep any and all options open. It’s also important to be honest with ourselves and prospective employers on what we are willing to do and what we aren’t. It’s imperative that we have a business model, but of course, the business this time is ourselves.
5. If you are reading this site, then you have already committed to an online persona and have honed your image on the Internet. This goes for all of us as we must determine if we want to expand that presence online and if this is a realistic path to take.

As Scott and I became partners in this venture months ago, the one issue that we discussed at length was me taking a more active role in learning the latest technology and how much of it perplexes me. In the near future, I will address some of the obstacles that I run into with certain limitations regarding lack of once available software, my search on the job market and some of the paths that others like myself are encountering in these bleak times for newspapers.

I want to add though, these are not “bleak” times for news. As I’ve said before, news distribution is evolving. We are in the midst of a revolution. It’s a matter of recognizing the right direction to head toward.

We will take this journey together.

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