A photo gallery depicting News Staffer David Wang’s year-long placement in the ODYSSEY Media Group is shown. Throughout his first and last year on staff, Wang has worked to meet challenge after challenge. “To say ODYSSEY was challenging would be an understatement. I had labeled myself an introvert all my life, yet reporting required me to constantly reach out to unfamiliar people and collaborate with my colleagues, even when I felt emotionally drained,” Wang wrote. Photos from the ODYSSEY archives
Accepting the challenge
News Staffer David Wang reflects on the meaning he found in ODYSSEY and the reason he wanted to keep pushing.
Throughout my time in ODYSSEY, I wasn’t always confident. But I stayed anyway.
At first, I underestimated how challenging this program would be. There were times I wanted to quit, but I stayed because I realized it was pushing me further than anything else had.
To say ODYSSEY was challenging would be an understatement. I had labeled myself an introvert all my life, yet reporting required me to constantly reach out to unfamiliar people and collaborate with my colleagues, even when I felt emotionally drained.
I recalibrated and readjusted my purpose upon setbacks. I will always remember the appreciation I received after my stories were published, and the responsibility we owe to our community.
Indeed, there were moments when I felt discouraged and unseen. I doubted my writing and myself: whether I truly deserved a place in Room 231 and whether the endless edits would one day turn my work into a story worthy of publication.
In those moments, when everything felt dull and uncertain, I carried on under pressure. I recalibrated and readjusted my purpose upon setbacks. I will always remember the appreciation I received after my stories were published, and the responsibility we owe to our community.
It’s all about the people it serves and the people who made it great.
That’s why I stayed.
