"Getting out of the business" resource thread

[BurnsWhenIPee]

It's been 15 years since I was hired at my first shop (which subsequently shut down four weeks later), so I'm no Young Gun anymore. After being fired twice and Gannett'd once -- leading to a self-published sports website -- I rose through the ranks at my most recent company to become a publisher of six weekly papers.

I put in my notice yesterday, and I'll be moving into a Director of Comms role in my town at the utility company. While I'm sad to see this life end, I'm excited for the new beginning and the security of my future.

If there are any resources you've come across in your outside-the-newsroom roles, please share them with me.

Congrats! I'll echo what others have said, that you'll enjoy not basically being on call 24/7 and going without the constant stress and beatdown that newspapers delivered on a daily basis (at least in my experiences).

I had a similar-ish trek, from 30-plus years in newspapers to working in a Comms role in a corporate setting. What I found is that doing things that feel like second-nature after my newspaper days, like juggling several different projects at once, meeting deadlines that can shift on a moment's notice, working with different departments and partners and keeping everyone happy no matter their priorities and agendas, etc., is very valuable and can be difficult to find in the corporate world. I've gotten several raises and a couple of unsolicited promotions because of that flexibility and dependability.

So raises, job security, less stress, and working a pretty set schedule with only rare night and weekend work, as only the most-rare emergencies require, is a great thing. My family has noticed a monster change in my inner peace, and the black cloud that seemingly was a constant in my newspaper days, is long gone by now.

Enjoy!