When I first became Editor-In-Chief of the Suffolk University Odyssey team, I had a mix of emotions. I was honored and thrilled to have been chosen for such an esteemed position. I was also overwhelmed and anxious about taking on the daunting task of building a team from the ground up.
My first few weeks at Odyssey Online were both exciting and confusing. I re-started the Suffolk branch of this awesome platform for writers, photographers and videographers this past January. I was left to re-build a team of writers who had experienced a lackluster attempt to develop a team the prior semesters.
After reaching out to all the original team members, I only received a response from a few writers who were eager to come back on board.
I was approached by the previous EIC who proceeded to dissuade me from taking on such a responsibility saying, "If anyone could have started a team at Suffolk it would have been me."
Obviously, these are the last words you want to hear when embarking on a new venture. But, honestly, it was her negativity that sparked a desire in me to succeed and prove her wrong.
With the encouragement of one of my most beloved journalism professors, who asked, "What do you have to lose? But more importantly, what do you have to gain?" I embarked on the processes of building a team of content creators.
I got busy sending out emails to new applicants, I talked to my journalism classes, spread the word to my friends, posted on Facebook and did all that I could in an attempt to recruit an awesome team.
Although it took work through trial and error, after a few weeks I had built a solid team of 12 content creators, the company standard of a good starting point. Some weeks were tougher than others in terms of getting people to submit and feeling the disappointment when a creator decided they weren't up for the task at hand. But, ultimately, the experience has been so rewarding.
Each and every week I get to witness the amazing content my team produces. Throughout these past couple of months, tragedy has struck the world far too many times. However, as a team, each and every one of my writers at one point or another has had the courage and strength to speak out.
With tears in my eyes, I've read articles about rape, gun violence, terrorism, war and so on. Each time I'm struck with a sense of pride that my team has a voice that wants to be heard. I've had many "You go girl!" moments when reading the various articles that have called out the absolute absurdity of the current state of politics in our country (within one party in particular…). I've also laughed at my computer screen at funny listicles and hilarious GIFs. I've been taught about new technologies, apps and phenomenons, and read stories of individual's triumphs and defeats. For this, I am honored.
Thank you to my awesome team of creatives who continue to amaze me with the content they produce each and every week.
Here is to us as a team and our ability to thrive as a community together. The Suffolk Odyssey team makes my job both easy and challenging and inspires me to grow as both a writer and an editor. Thank you to my kick-ass contributing editors who help ease the work load, take over my responsibilities when I’m either sick or on vacation and motivate me each week, I couldn't do it without you!
I am humbled to have been given the opportunity to lead and develop this team, and I can't wait to see what our future holds.
