Go long and take your time
Reporters of all stripes are insanely competitive: It’s what makes them good, it’s fun (or at least supplies the adrenaline we all crave, which isn’t always the same thing), and of course it’s the way news organizations keep score. But those news organizations need to realize the game has changed. Being first with commodity news no longer registers with readers — and readers, ultimately, are the ones who pay the bills, to the extent bills are paid at all in our era. The more energy wasted pursuing obsolete bragging rights, the less energy available for what really does still register with readers.
So what’s that? Stories that require you to slow down and invest more time in fewer efforts.
Though I’m just a lowly blogger, I’m finding increasingly that my best work doesn’t come from beating someone else to a story. My best work comes when I focus my energy on the story that only I can write.
