This unorthodox interview question helps me figure out if a job candidate will be a great hire — or not.
Plus: Updates from the fantastic b° future festival for journalism and constructive dialogue in Bonn, Germany.
Hey y’all! I’m writing the latest edition of this newsletter on a plane home to Toronto from Germany after a whirlwind and super fun trip to Frankfurt and then Bonn for the b° future festival (kudos to Ellen Heinrichs and the Bonn Institute team on your success!). I’ll officially be back at it again tomorrow. 🇩🇪✈️🇨🇦
While I was participating in a zine workshop at the festival hosted by Emma Thomasson, a former student of mine from CUNY’s Entrepreneurial Journalism Creators Program, I got into a conversation about The Green Line with a German journalist/trainer named Stan. Among the questions he asked me was one that I get often from industry folks, especially those who are media entrepreneurs building their own outlet: How do you know who to hire?
Stan didn’t mean where to source job candidates; rather, he wanted to know how I could tell who would be a great hire — someone who’s reliable, collaborative, hard-working, creative, respectful, self-respecting.
I thought about it for a beat, and told him, “I guess I’m a good judge of character.” But how many times have you heard everyone and their mother say that, true or not? My immediate response didn’t really capture how my approach to hiring is, at the risk of sounding like an aura-cleansing crystal whisperer, ✨ holistic ✨.
As mentioned repeatedly in previous editions of The Other Wave, I really like my team, not just as workers but also for who they are as people (they’re solid humans). I’ve been able to attract some of the top Gen Z and Millennial journalists in Canada who have their pick of outlets to join, and while I’ve had the rare team member who disappointed (occasions where I also learned valuable lessons as a manager), far more often than not, they meet and surpass my expectations. Even when their internships, fellowships or contracts are up, they want to keep coming back and stay connected. Two quick anecdotes to support this point: Four people who attended our TGL BBQ gathering last month were alum, and two former TGL staff who went on to work at CBC’s downtown Toronto headquarters told me that they say “TGL” to each other every time they pass each other in the hallways (I assume, obviously, with finger guns and a wink),
So, when I thought about it some more, I told Stan about the question I ask every TGL job candidate at the end of every interview, no matter the role: What is your life philosophy?
I always preface it by saying, “This last question is a little unorthodox, but I like asking it because it helps me get a better sense of who you are as a person.” I then follow up the question with, “What are the principles that guide you in life, not just work?” to really clarify what I mean.
How people respond to this question tells me a lot about how they think about and therefore approach the world, as well as what they value in life. Some repeat clichés, but others (the ones I usually hire) give thoughtful answers that are deeply rooted in, for example, their family’s values, their secular principles, their faiths, their life experiences, which help me better understand how aligned the candidate is with The Green Line’s mission and how grounded they are (something that’s essential in a demanding and public service-oriented role like journalism). I also look for people who, like myself, prioritize life over work. At the end of the day, journalism is about relationships more than it is about writing, research or even reporting. If someone isn’t living their life out in the world, spending time with loved ones and on their hobbies, then they won’t be able to connect with or gain the trust of the everyday people they want to cover. For me, sometimes the more unorthodox the background (for a journalist), the better, because that can indicate confidence and independence of thought.
While I value investigative journalism and deeply respect my investigative peers, The Green Line doesn’t prioritize those kinds of stories. Not only are there lots of local outlets doing a fantastic job with that already, we focus on producing service journalism and conducting community engagement because that’s the kind of tangible work that helps people navigate their lives on a daily basis. Investigations hold power to account and can change policies, but all it takes is for someone new to enter office and that policy can regress or disappear. Of course, that doesn’t mean investigative journalism doesn’t hold value — all public-service journalism does and there’s room for everyone — but for The Green Line, transforming the individual is our unit of change and success metric. When you help someone help themselves through the power of journalism, that’s a forever change.
Longtime followers of The Other Wave know that I’m a philosophy nerd, and I take a lot of inspiration from Stoicism and Taoism. So, I’ll end off with my answer to “What is your life philosophy?” Although I naturally don’t always embody these principles, I try my very best every day:
Go with the flow and accept things you can’t control — namely the natural rhythms of life: change, including growth and loss.
Be aware of and manage your thoughts and emotions (the only things you can really control) because they ultimately shape who you are.
Stay present and attuned to the natural world, which also means being connected to who you are at your core.
Give yourself and others grace because every human (really, every living being) is ultimately connected to each other.
Honour yourself and protect your peace, and everything will work out the way it’s supposed to.
Shout-out
I want to give a warm official welcome and congratulations to Yara El Murr, The Green Line’s first-ever full-time managing editor, who previously worked for us as engagement editor. Yara is an incredible journalist and person whose answer to that all-important question I paraphrased here:
On a deep level, I do believe community is very important to me in my life, and not just when it comes to journalism (I always seek community and I can’t go through life alone). Life is hard enough, and part of my role is to make it happier even just for one person
The Green Line opportunities: text/video pitches
The Green Line is looking for freelancers interested in short-form and long-form pitches for text-based articles, as well as videos, from experienced reporters based in Toronto that tackle systemic issues in the city through a solutions lens. We offer highly competitive freelance rates. If you’re interested in pitching, please email your pitch, resume and links to three clips to hello@thegreenline.to.
Quick and Clean
More travel for me again in October — this time to Missouri for the Reynolds Journalism Institute’s Community-Centered Symposium from Oct. 25 to 26. Give me a shout if you’ll be there, too!
Unfortunately, I’ll be missing out on attending Press Forward’s Future of Independent Media Summit, which is also taking place on Oct. 26 at OCAD University where publishers will share their challenges, successes, innovations and ideas about the future of independent media in Canada. Buy your ticket before they sell out!
Humber College’s StoryLab is hosting its annual daylong conference, Data Driven 2024, which this year will focus on data journalism, open-source intelligence and AI. Register now to book your spot.
Huge congrats to my mentor, entrepreneur and innovator Steve Pratt, who just published his new book, Earn It: Unconventional Strategies for Brave Marketers. Order your copy!
How you can support The Other Wave
My professional mission has always been to support the global movement towards more thoughtful, impactful news coverage, and all the ways that manifests. If The Other Wave gets you to think even a little differently about journalism, especially in Canada, then I will have accomplished what I set out to do. And if TOW gets you to take action and support Canadian media outlets — especially ones that strive to be innovative and inclusive — I will have exceeded my expectations.
If my values and goals resonate with you, please consider supporting fiercely independent media analysis that fills in gaps in coverage of the Canadian journalism landscape. How? Feel free to provide feedback, pass along resources, donate money or simply share this newsletter with your friends.