For those of you who are unfamiliar with Odyssey, it is a "social content platform that discovers and shares a chorus of millennial voices, amplified organically through social media. Through its proprietary technology, Odyssey is revolutionizing content creation and discovery – enabling compelling, high-quality content to be created and discovered at speed and scale. Odyssey flips the traditional editorial model on its head, and rejects the 'one size fits all' approach. Odyssey empowers communities restless to be heard and audiences eager to listen, and it’s really resonating." Pretty much, it's an awesome company that allows young people to voice their thoughts and opinions to millions of people. Cool, right? You know what's even cooler, though? Being an editor-in-chief (EIC) for Odyssey.
In every Odyssey community, there is an EIC who makes sure everything is going smoothly. If you're an EIC at Odyssey, you know what a special experience it is.
1. Being a Manager
EICs manage their team, which can range from 12-60 content creators. It can be a struggle to make sure that each creator is following through with their weekly responsibilities, but it's necessary to ensure that you hit your quota for that week. It's also a challenge to find the balance between the "laid-back, cool manager" and the "intimidating, harsh manager."
2. Being a Recruiter
Creators come and go, so it's important that EICs always try to constantly recruit. Sending hundreds of emails, putting up flyers, and networking are only a few of the many strategies EICs use to expand the team. You always have to be on the lookout for opportunities to spread the word about Odyssey!
3. Being a Motivator
Believe it or not, writing articles can be difficult. Although writing one short article a week on any topic of your choosing sounds fairly easy, writer's block can be a pain in the butt. Creators sometimes need help brainstorming for ideas, so once you get some ideas flowing, they can write much more easily!
4. Being an Editor
Personally, I never thought I'd appreciate all the grammar lessons back in grade school, but they're finally coming in handy now. EICs must be competent in grammar and formatting (got to love AP style, right?) in order to be successful with this job considering they have to edit numerous articles each week. But hey, if you're a journalism major, this is great practice for the future!
5. Being a Leader
Jane Dizon once said, "A boss’ goal is to get things done, while a leader, not only gets things done, they empower and motivate their team." That is the quote to live by, ladies and gentlemen (#goals).
6. Creating and Maintaining Relationships
Your team is so much more than a group of content creators. Each person is so unique, and working with them for an extended period of time gives you the opportunity to get to know them better. Personally, a few of my creators have even opened up to me on a personal level and explained that they consider me to be a mentor to them (#honored).
7. Goal-Setting
As an EIC, your job goes way beyond the basic "write one article a week and share it" obligation. With the weekly article count, recruitment challenges and more, your managing editor sets goals for you in addition to the goals that you've set for yourself, for your contributing editors, and for your team as a whole.
8. Growth
Nothing is more rewarding than seeing a creator who initially struggled with writing, syntax, content ideas, etc. improve substantially. Development and growth isn't simple, so it's a major accomplishment when you see that a creator's hard work has finally paid off. Coaching creators is one of the most important things an EIC can do because this is the key for growth (in their team and in general!).
9. Intense Organization
Editor spreadsheets, article idea spreadsheets, individual feedback spreadsheets... Shall I go on? Any EIC can tell you that organization is a necessity. From keeping track of your scheduled phone screenings with potential new creators to weekly video calls with your managing editor, you get an organizational system down right then and there because it's way too much for you to remember on your own.
10. How Fun and Rewarding It Is
Overall, being an EIC for Odyssey is something I value so much. How awesome is it that I get to work with an amazing, talented team and help them voice their opinions on a platform available to millions of people? They are not only fantastic writers, they are fantastic people, and that's what makes this job so special.
