Molly's unique and enthusiastic style, combined with her 15+ years of experience on the Web, combine to make her one of the most interesting, stimulating and inspiring individuals I have had the pleasure to work with.This is what she had to say in a recent interview:
jill: When did you get your first instinct that the "party" was over?
molly: Who says the party is over? I think it has just begun. Now, that
does not mean there aren't some sobering things going on. Many people have lost jobs, seen
their companies fold. Times are tough in the economic realm, and I am certainly compassionate about that. But there are also some really important things that we have to keep in mind. First of all, this is a true adjustment. No
industry could have sustained an economy largely based on speculation. And, people who
have been in this or any other business know that it was a pipe dream to think that all you
needed was a halfway clever idea and an Angel Investor to make a million. It is silly, really.
So getting rid of all that bloat is actually a benefit in the end. The true Web builders-those who enjoy their work and consider it a long-term career choice will do fine as long as they keep their chops up.
It's a readjustment period.
Another important thing to point out is that it's really an extremely exciting time
in Web development and beyond to wireless. There's so much cool stuff going on, so
many things to be excited about and inspired by.
jill: Have you made career changes because of the shift in the economy?
molly: Yes. While my contract term as Executive Editor of WebReview.com
(CMP Media, Inc.) was up and I made the voluntary decision not to continue, the company went through extreme budget cuts and layoffs. Contractors were the first to go.While my decision was mostly made because I wanted to return to writing and speaking full time, the doom-and-gloom environment of the company was rather
disconcerting. What's more, that WR's office are located in San Francisco added to my
concerns, as the situation is especially harsh in that area. It's possible I pre-empted either
being cut or being asked to take a salary cut, which would not have been acceptable
due to the sheer volume of my responsibilities there
.
jill: Have recent economical developments caused you to make any changes that affect your life in a positive way?
molly: Ironically, while WebReview.com was overall an extremely happy
time for me, the scope of what I was doing cut into other things that were ultimately
more important to me. You know how life goes?sometimes you can't see what you
really want or need until the issue is forced into your field of vision. I was
first going to make the decision to back off writing and teaching, and stay
another year at WR. However, I see now on a personal and professional level that
would have been the wrong decision.
Freeing up that space has been a wonderful thing for me. I have more
time to spend with my family and friends?some of whom had been feeling quite neglected
by me, which doesn't say much about where my personal priorities were. Many of
us are facing that, I think. That I could make my work so much more important
than my loved ones still worries me a great deal. I think I was just so caught
up in the adrenaline rush that I didn't notice. That makes me ashamed of myself!
There's a resurgence of my personal interests. I've always played music and have
been in a professional duo for the past 8 years, but now we are expanding to a
full band and I have more time to commit to that.
I'm rediscovering the independent, creative spirit of the Web.
I have sat down for the first time in years and created Web poems and other purely
expressive projects, which will debut online in the next several months. What?s
really cool about this is that being able to just have time to create what I want
instead of what a company or client wants makes me discover new ways of doing
things. It is the perfect way for me to research and test new technologies or
approaches without it ever feeling like a chore.
jill: As a person who has fought back from your own physical/health
challenges, and become a success in your own right, do you feel that helps or
hinders you at this time?
Do you feel that having fought this battle once already, you
have additional strength and resources to "weather the storm", so to speak?
molly: Getting really, really sick in my life is one of the things that
made me courageous enough to climb the proverbial ladder to success. I spent
about a year bed-bound and another 6 years housebound. All of this was in my 20's, a
time in people's lives where they are getting their education and meeting future
partners and so on. Therefore, I missed many "normal" life passages.
Nevertheless, what I got in return was the opportunity to face my
mortality, which in turn forced me to look at life through eyes that were very
different than most of my peers. I swore to myself that if I ever made it through
that dark passage, I would go for all of my dreams: to write, to play music, to
find something beautiful in every day. And so it has been.
Again, I don't feel like we're really in a storm. No, I'd rather say it
this way: we are in a storm, and while I recognize the dangers and see some
significant damage, I'm also noticing the beautiful clouds, wild lightening, and fresh,
clean air the storm is bringing. Perhaps at the end of the day I'm a tireless
optimist. I even tried to stop being an optimist. During the time I was really ill, I tried to
stop believing in God, I tried to stop caring, at one point, I even tried to stop
living. I have failed miserably at all of those things. However, if anyone can be happy about
failure, I am really happy about my failures in this regard!
jill:Had the momentum continued, do you think you would have made the changes you have?
molly: Oh, yes. The shift had to come eventually. Actually, I can
pinpoint the exact moment when I realized I'd hit burnout. I was speaking at Web DC in
August, 2000, and I suddenly felt very tired and dizzy. I sat down in the vast and rather
bizarre Ronald Reagan International Trade Center and took a few deep breaths,
when the thought popped into my head "I just don't care about this."
I can't tell you how much that scared me! The truth is I really did
care, and my passion has been renewed and revitalized for many reasons. I was so tired, so
drained from traveling, and teaching full-day tutorials to large groups. It takes a
lot of physical and mental energy to sustain that.Yet, I forced myself through nearly
another year of intense work schedules and travel. Was it a mistake not to stop sooner?
I don't think so. I learned too many important things.
Nevertheless, I'm really, truly happy that the
industry shifts forced me into re-evaluating my circumstances. Moreover,
I am not alone in this, not at all. I know so many colleagues, peers, and friends
in the industry who are going through the exact same process. And most of them are
actually finding happier lives, with better balance between what is home, what is work,
and which activities we are doing online for pleasure and passion versus those that are truly
just jobs.
jill: Thank you so much for sharing.
Continue to Molly-Part Two