Inside Independent

This is my last issue of The Independent.

My time as editor was unexpected: I came to Clark at the start of fall quarter after spending my first year of college across the country at George Mason University.

I had an established interest in journalism after taking a couple of J-101 type classes at Mason, so while at Clark to knock out the rest of my 100 and 200 level classes, I signed up for College Newspaper.

I walked into class the first day, where I found myself in the middle of an established staff as a green reporter taking on my first assignment.

Part way through that first class, I realized I didn't even know the name of the paper I was now writing for.

Since that day, boy has my life changed. Somehow I went from reporter to editor-in-chief by the start of winter quarter, and launched myself on a wild roller coaster of a ride that is The Independent.

My time as editor has been a lesson no class could teach. I've worked with dozens of reporters and editors, sometimes stumbling, and sometimes succeeding to cover the news on campus. I've seen countless arguments, a few tears, several satisfied smiles, and those sighs of relief after barely meeting a deadline.

The thing about The Independent is that it pushes you like you've never been pushed before. As editor, you're captain of a sinking ship and it takes every last fingers and toes to keep the holes plugged and the ship sailing forward.

Every time you take focus off one editor or one story and shift it to another, you're called back to address some problem or pull someone along so he or she finishes the assignment. It never ends, but by some miracle, some form of the paper has gotten out each week.

I've learned many things while on staff at The Independent, but one lesson rises above all: motivation.

I've learned motivation is hard to teach, nearly impossible to pass on, and it's perpetually disappointing.

I don't mean to be doom and gloom, but while at The Independent, I've noticed that it's a rare thing to find motivation within someone.

Motivation comes from deep within people, feeding off their own need to do well and take pride in their work. It's a fuel that's contagious within your own soul, but that fuel seems to be missing in most.

I don't know why. Maybe we've been trained as students to get the job done and move on, because that's all that has ever been expected of us. We do the assignment without any real personal investment, because personal investment was never an assessment criterion.

Depriving yourself of motivation is selling yourself short.

Just because it's the way you've always done it, doesn't mean it's right. People will notice a motivated person and appreciate the attitude that takes pride and personal investment in the task at hand.

I don't want this to sound like some silly attempt at a published graduation speech, but now as I head back to George Mason to finish my last two years of college, this really is what I will take away from my time at Clark and The Independent, a time that in spite of everything, I really and truly have enjoyed.

So set yourself apart and find a personal motivation, a deep investment, in everything you do.

People will notice.

I can't tell you the number of times a reporter has taken a story assignment, done a mediocre job of reporting, and turned it in for publication without really caring what the final product turned out to be.

Hey, I've been that reporter myself once or twice, but I hope for the most part I have shown pride in what I do.

As editor, it was so refreshing when someone would approach work for The Independent, not with a motivation of getting it done or moving on to the next assignment, but a motivation from within because the reporter's name is attached to that work and have invested a piece of themselves to the paper.

In closing, I do want to thank all of the reporters and editors I have worked with while at The Independent. You all have taught me lessons that I will carry for life and I hope I've left you with a little something too.

And to our adviser, Dee Anne Finken, I know it hasn't always been easy, but you bring a dedication, a compassion, and a motivation to your work that is truly unmatched by any professor I have had. I enjoyed working with you and I wish both you and The Independent continued success in the years to come.

And finally, to you, our readers. There is nothing to say, but thank you, for without you, our work is for not.

So as always, thanks for reading and have a wonderful summer!

Contact Jordan Frasier at editorinchief@students.clark.edu