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Sunday, November 29, 2015

On focusing on the one

"And that is how change happens. One gesture. One person. One moment at a time."
Libba Bray
It's easy to get lost in the numbers when you work in media. When I first started publishing and doing on-air work, I'd often wonder about who was on the other end of the mic, camera, printing press or website. How many people were "out there"? How many listeners? Viewers? Readers? Visitors?

At first, the numbers themselves made the work itself seem super-daunting. When your voice is heard by thousands of people, or your face seen by even more, you'd be forgiven for thinking there's a lot of weight hanging on every word.

That was a much more naive me. Because now that I've been at it for a little while, I've learned that there's still a lot of weight on our collective shoulders, but not because of the sheer numbers.

The number could be 10 or 10,000, but every time I hit Publish or settle into a chair in a darkened studio, I imagine there's only one person on the other end. I wonder what he/or she wants to know, imagine that we're sitting around my kitchen table or living room having an informal chat.

And if I manage to reach that one person in some way, it's worth the effort. Everything - and everyone - beyond that is a delightful bonus.

Your turn: What are you going to say to the next ONE person who crosses your path?

1 comment:

  1. I'll probably say "Turn off the light when you leave the room." Because the next person whose path I cross will probably be my teenager.

    ReplyDelete

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