Did you take your first job offer?

I declined my first job offer. They wanted an 18-month commitment to earn 20k a year as a one-man department in a extremely small town that was very much in the middle of nowhere. Now at the time I was a new grad, living at home and stringing prep football for the local major metro (so working three hours a week).

Logic dictated I take it, but I had an eye for something better (I'd mostly been applying to slightly larger papers) and basically felt there was a small chance I could string my way into work at one of the smaller papers in major metro's chain and stay local, or if I got through football season, I could at least put major metro on my resume for whatever that's worth. And I guess I thought if I couldn't get that kind of job again without a ton of trouble, I probably wasn't built for this business anyway.

So I turned it down with nothing to go back to but home. A six weeks later I got a call from a place I applied before the place that offered, soon I had my pick of two offers in far better situations.

Also, man that seems like a bad sign the editor forgot about the interview. With a staff that small I think you'd triple-circle the day on the calender that meant relief from being down a man.

 

I think it's comical when people want a commitment from a new hire to stay a certain length of time -- unless they give you an 18-month contract.

 

Two great pieces of advice:

 

Some answers ...

1. Did you accept or decline your first job offer?

Accepted. I took it because it was a full-time job right out of college at a major metro paper -- my hometown paper, where I wanted to work. I was lucky to start there instead of having to work my way up through Small Town America. The offer was partly because I had the chops, but equally because I made the right connections along the way.

2. Did I make the right decision based on the pay and job duties?

If your heart is set on working at a newspaper, then you certainly did. If your heart is more into being an SID, you probably didn't. Having the newspaper background will give you some credibility, though. The pay at a newspaper and the pay as an SID is comparable, at least when you're starting out. The hours might be longer as an SID, though. Don't overlook that.

3. How hard is it to make the jump from daily preps writer to SID or media relations?

Hard to say, but your first call after taking your new job probably should be getting to know the sports information directors at the colleges in your area to establish a professional working relationship. Just remember where your responsibilities lie for now.

Some comments ...

The fact that you're running your own shop means you have relatively free rein to do things that help you get noticed. Don't miss your chance to tackle some interesting projects that can advance your career. Working for a newspaper isn't all about advances, gamers and follows. To the extent possible, think about investigations, special sections and magazine-style features (especially those with a multimedia component). Build your portfolio.

On the other hand, the fact that you're running your own shop means you'll have plenty of opportunities to screw up. And you will, because it comes with the territory. Try to find a mentor. Based on the information you already shared, I'm guessing the editor won't be it. It might be one of the two writers, instead. Or it might be the sports editor at a bigger paper that you admire. It might be the wise, retired high school ball coach in your town. Just keep your eyes and ears open for people you can trust. (As long as it's not someone you cover or someone who can influence the people you cover, of course.)

And try to keep true to your promise of staying a year. If you're at a place where you're able to do whatever you want, you won't learn anything. You'll stagnate. But if you have a goal -- getting out by this time next year -- you'll naturally do what it takes to achieve it. For you, that means networking and building your portfolio.

It takes some effort, but it can be done regardless of where you are.

 

I think Gary met porndexter!

 

Or a writer in the Upper Midwest that has the reputation for doing this.

 

This description of the make-up of small-town paper staffs is spot-on, from my experience. I was in a very similar situation (without the SID ambitions) when I took my first job offer. It was in a small town about 1.5 hours away from my hometown, so I made the commute for a few months, then broke down and got a place down there. Definitely was making less than 21K, but it was fairly cheap living. I was there 9 months before I found a part-time gig at the hometown paper that I later parlayed into a full-time gig, and I have been here ever since. I had to take a second job to supplement my part-time income after moving back, but I did what I needed to, and it all worked out.
Having said that, the likelihood of you moving on that quickly is not as great in this job market. I got going 15 years or so ago. But I seriously doubt you'd be stuck there.

 

1, I declined my first offer. It was in the middle of BFE, and I mean between a desert and 2,000 tumbleweeds on Route 66. It was the right decision. In making your decision, you must weigh all the pros and cons. How good is the paper, how good is the pay, what does the work atmosphere feel like, do your coworkers seem happy and inviting, what responsibilities will you have, what can you learn and experience will you gain, how good of a boss will you work under, what are the company benefits, is the pay worth it, what's the cost of living for the area and can you have any kind of life outside of your work there. If you can answer these questions and come away satisfied overall, then the job is good enough for you to start out in.

2, My decision was the right decision. I took the second job that was offered to me. It was more money in a much better place, within an hour from a major metro. The opportunities were endless from high school to college to pro. Within 12 months I was the new sports editor and within another 18 months I was covering an SEC football team and a had a Division I college beat. Yes, it was the right decision. I worked my ass off for two and a half years, put in some longass days, nights and weekends, sometimes up to 90 hours in a week. But in the end, it paid the reward I sought. If you are willing to bust your ass and have some talent to go with your hard work, you can make it happen.

3, Personally, my opinion is if you want to go into media relations/PR, you might as well start now. There are tons of openings at the website previously mentioned. You simply start there and find someone willing to hire you and begin the long journey of working your way up. It's a good field with great benefits, long-term job security. I would not steer you away from it. Just remember that it's PR, so you're dealing with an entirely different style of writing. If you can stomach that part of it, I'd go that direction now rather than later. I have no doubt you can find a job in the field for similar if not better pay, too. I see turnover in it like hotcakes on a griddle.

4, Never worked in another country. Been to Mexico a couple times but not interested in leaving the states.

There is some really solid advice in this thread. Read it carefully. Here's a couple of points I want to make:

1, My biggest concern based on what you say is the editor. He sounds totally unprofessional. This is a MAJOR red flag as someone else mentioned. I would be very, very concerned about working for this individual.

2, If you are really wanting to work in sports information, then you need to just swim that direction now. There's no need to start out in newspaper.

3, Don't worry about money right now. You're young and you can always change directions with your career over the next decade or two if you are not climbing the ladder or meeting your financial goals. Still, there is something extremely beneficial about loving the work you do. I'm not rich. I make a fair living. I have extra spending money but I don't live in a 2-story house and I don't drive a Mercedes. But I'm very happy and that's what matters most. Do what makes you happy.

 

I accepted my first journalism job offer.

It also took nearly 4 years to get one. But I'm quite happy. I make more than I really expected to (though obviously still not much) and I'm in a nice place, if not loaded with big-city opportunities. It all comes down to what makes you happy.

I'm interviewing for a job tomorrow, the first interview I've taken in the 10 months since I started, but I don't expect to take the job unless I'm bowled over by the salary.

 

I declined the first job I was offered, from a certain Liberal, Kan. newspaper that everyone walked out on. As I sat in the hotel room before the job interview and saw the sheer about of molestation cases coming up on the court agate and none of it being reported in the news section, I raised a question about said coverage, "We don't like to do too much bad news..." I started to sour there, and it just got worse from my treatment at the local Wal-Mart to there not being a lot of things to really do in Liberal, I went home and said if nobody else was going to offer I would take it but luckily as I walked through the door from that trip there were two messages left for me, one was a nice fallback job I didn't take and the other was the job I took that started this crazy road 10 years ago in small town papers. Best decision I ever made.

 

"We don't like to do too much bad news ..."

good for them for taking a stand.

 

stellar.