Aug. 3, 2009

Consider this thought from Richard Leider and Stephen Buchholz:

“A subtle killer stalks America. This insidious force is more prevalent than heart disease, cancer or alcoholism, yet little is done to prevent it or effect a cure. We call it “rustout.” Rustout is the slow death that follows when we stop making choices that keep life alive. It's the feeling of numbness that comes from taking the safe way, never accepting new challenges, continually surrendering to the day-to-day routine. Rustout means we are no longer growing, but at best, are simply maintaining. It implies that we have traded the sensation of life for the security of a paycheck. Rustout is the opposite of burnout. Burnout is overdoing. Rustout is underbeing.”

The stagnation of the newspaper industry is leading to a lot of individual rustout. It's hardly surprising. We're scared for our jobs. We've lost confidence in our corporate leaders. Worse, we've lost confidence in ourselves to adapt and survive, much less thrive. There are more dark clouds than blue sky on the horizon.

Now what?

Remember the safety message about oxygen masks before each flight? “If you're helping someone else with a mask, put your own on first.” Unless we take care of ourselves we're not much good to anyone else.

When rustout threatens, here are three questions to ask:

• What do I want? This is the most important question in selfmanagement. Few people choose “muddle through” as an answer, but for most this is the strategy in place. If you want to stay in journalism and recharge your batteries, that choice will lead you to an action plan that is fulfilling and engaging. If you want to find a plan B outside journalism. the very decision to act will be both frightening and exhilarating, but it will shake off the rust.
• What's stopping me? Invariably the answer is fear. Fear of changing your career in midstream. Fear of failure. Fear of hardships that might accompany transition? For decades journalism (especially at daily newspapers) has been a warm cocoon. The industry was proud, profitable and powerful. Let's face it, we enjoyed the status. Unless we were unthinkably reckless, our jobs were secure. We were anchored in personal and professional security.
  That's why today's conditions are such a shock. We are forced to be adventurers, pioneers, inventers, solo entrepreneurs. Not all of us are prepared for those roles. I coach many journalists trying to reinvent themselves, and their first hurdle is to imagine change. Cognitively they know change is necessary, but in many of their hearts they wish that imperative would just go away so they could continue on their comfortable path.
• What do I need to do? If you know what you want, it's a short step to making a choice and an action plan. It takes courage. It often takes help from a coach. But the first step is to be aware of the looming rustout that is sapping your energy and enthusiasm for life.