Changing careers ...

From a reader ...

Your post on September 23rd about KLOU was on target. People do NOT care about local DJs anymore, unless you are one of the top tier 5% in a market, which are largely morning people.

That's why I hung up the radio headphones permanently in May 2009 after the upteenth time I'd be a budget cut in radio. I had already been working on a new degree, albeit part-time. Oddly enough, when The Arch let me go, it was the best thing that could have happened. I was able to dedicate myself full-time to my Nursing degree & became eligible for more financial aid & scholarships than I would have been while working full-time.

So, after 18 years in radio, I am now a Nurse at the 8th best hospital in the nation, not to mention the best in the STL area.

Do I miss radio? Of course I do. It served its purpose in my life. I made crappy money, but had a blast & managed to build enough character to last a lifetime. But, at the end of the day, radio felt hollow to me. There is more to life than having fun & being a celebrity of some sort. DJs come & go, but every day I help very sick people feel better, even if it's only for 12 hours at a time.

10 years from now, the name of such-&-such DJ may fade, but that Nurse who took the time to listen to their needs while at their lowest point will ALWAYS stay with them. It's truly one-on-one, the life should be. Even after a day constructed in Hell, I drive home smiling because, even though my day may have sucked, I probably made someone's day better at a time when they were completely vulnerable.

Healthcare IS a business, just like radio, but Nursing is a profession that can NEVER be replaced by automation, Pandora or XM/Sirius.

I see unemployed radio friends still trying to find a radio gig & I feel sad. The business let them down. They have probably let themselves down by being so consumed by radio that they never truly found other passions in life.

When I was finally able to release the "drug" that is radio...& it is like a drug...I was able to find something that satisfies me more than I could have ever imagined. I just want to remind everyone to not limit themselves. As Joseph Campbell said, "My general formula for my students is 'Follow your bliss.' Find where it is, and don't be afraid to follow it."

I would add to that. Don't be so narrow minded as to limit yourself to one bliss or stay in your comfort zone. Sometimes life is telling us something & we choose to ignore it. Follow the signs...

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