GREGG JARRETT: My mother’s advice led me to the career of a lifetime
Decades ago, when I was agonizing over the decision to forsake my profession as a trial lawyer to pursue a far riskier and more uncertain career in television news, my mother offered sage advice.
"The worst thing you can do is choose the easy course and be haunted by regret over what might have been," she said.
I embraced her counsel, realizing that the only thing scarier than change is the absence of imagination. I quit my secure and lucrative job as an attorney in San Francisco and moved forward into the unknown. Fortunately, I was too naive to understand that the chances of success were remote.
I discovered that change hurts. It can be difficult and discouraging. But the fear of failure forced me to persevere. My early ventures up the ladder from local news channels to larger network operations felt like Churchill’s "wilderness years." It was a long slog in search of advancement and fulfillment. Self-doubt was always hovering nearby.
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But all of that vanished when I landed at Fox News nearly a quarter of a century ago. I have been grateful ever since to have played a small role in a network that has changed the face of television news for the better.
I could tell at the outset that the people at Fox were different. They were dedicated and passionate. The common denominator was an unwavering commitment to excellence. We supported one another.
But the heart and soul of our network are the viewers themselves. They watch with consistency because they trust what they see and hear. They feel engaged. In turn, those of us on air and the many people behind the scenes do our level best to maintain that trust by providing the highest-quality news and information available.
As a 24-hour news operation, that level of devotion and diligence is not easy to sustain. Yet I am consistently impressed by the energy, creativity and intelligence that my colleagues bring to the on-air product every hour of every day. They are tireless and enthusiastic even when they have every right not to be. Those are rare qualities.
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During my many years at Fox, I have covered a multitude of stories — the War on Terror, hurricanes, disasters, presidential elections, the dot-com crash, financial calamities, social upheavals, cultural controversies, criminal trials, Supreme Court decisions and the COVID-19 pandemic, to name a few.
Fox never said "no" when I wanted to venture beyond the newsroom. They encouraged it.
Having previously reported from conflict zones in the Middle East, I volunteered in 2003 as a correspondent during the Iraq War. For a time, I was embedded with the 3rd Infantry Division. These were courageous young soldiers who took good care of me. The experience gave me a renewed respect and admiration for our nation’s military. There is none better anywhere.
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The world has changed dramatically since I first stepped into the Fox studios in 2002. America has become more digital, diverse and technologically advanced. Smartphones, e-commerce, social media, cloud computing and AI have transformed our lives. The Dow Jones Industrial Average hovered around 10,000 back then. It now exceeds 50,000.
In my time at Fox News, I have served as an anchor, reporter, documentary host, opinion columnist and, most recently, legal analyst for the network. I penned four books along the way. I have grown and evolved in ways that I never imagined. Fox made that possible. And I’ve enjoyed every minute of it.
It has certainly been a different life than what I envisioned as a young man exiting law school so long ago. Far more rewarding. During the journey, I learned some valuable lessons. Sometimes it pays to take a chance. And to listen to your mother.
So, may I offer my sincere thanks to Fox News and a hearty congratulations on its 30th anniversary!