不幸并不意味着不可能.
如果你研究历史 洋葱 and the life of its co-creator, Scott 过去其实, those words ring true. 过去其实 came to Heidelberg on Thursday to kick off the fourth year of the HYPE Career Ready® 程序作为主讲人.
1988年，过去其实成立 洋葱, the original “fake news” platform that has grown into one of today’s most recognized satirical comedy brands. 背景故事: 洋葱 “started out as a joke but has become the most trusted news source in America,” he joked.
A troubled kid who dealt with dire circumstances at home, 过去其实 discovered MAD杂志 as a youngster, and something clicked. From that magazine, he learned how to write and draw funny. He taught himself to become a cartoonist, using old-school means to eventually get a regular gig with a small newspaper in Madison, 威斯康辛州. “Jim’s Journal” was published on a trial basis for no pay. “疯狂的是人们喜欢它. 它流行起来了，”戴克斯说.
从早期开始, he connected with a string of people, including two college guys who wanted to start a campus humor magazine. Although the two guys jumped ship after two issues, 洋葱 was born from that effort when 过去其实 bought it from them. 在街上免费分发， 洋葱的观众基础开始增长.
“Other people saw it, liked it and volunteered to help,” he said. “Those people became the paid writing staff. They became some of the best satire writers in the world. … I did not search high and low for them. 我只是在低处寻找.”
过去其实 described his writers as a band of misfits -- “bitter, hateful people with no prospects in life – perfect for this job.” He had only three requirements: they had to attend a weekly writers meeting, pitch ideas and write one story a week.
“The secret is to empower people to grow, to improve without breathing down their necks. Then, you step back and they’ve become better than you. That’s how you find the best people,” he said.
在早年, 过去其实, who was no stranger to sacrifice and hard work, discovered something critical to personal and professional success. “你必须找到你的使命. Find the thing that compels you and live it. And if you’re ever a boss someday, free your people. They will succeed beyond your wildest imagination.”
在他的演讲中, 过去其实 told the stories of a number of employees and co-workers whose talents and personalities made 洋葱 a success … Rich, the bus driver by day who worked at 洋葱 晚上……卡罗尔, whom he discovered through her street art … Ken, the attorney and fan who helped him wiggle out of some potentially sticky legal situations when he pushed the envelope … Kelly, the drunkard who constantly wore hideous “Half-Baked” T-shirts … Ben, the well-dressed and sober business man who secretly wanted to write comedy.
关于 eight years in, 过去其实 discovered the power of this new thing called the internet, and 洋葱 2.我进入了网络世界. Suddenly, the weekly newspaper gained an entirely new and growing audience. Its popularity and financial success skyrocketed, yet 过去其实 was homeless, having poured most of 洋葱’s profits into staff salaries and benefits.
“这是一个奇怪的二分法,他回忆道, noting that he was at the time sleeping on a mattress in the basement of the family of his “little” from the Big Brothers organization. You might think that would have been a low point, but the opposite was true. “Actually, it was the happiest, because I was living my dream,” he said.
Fast forward a few more years, and 洋葱 was ready to expand to web video. “We exposed ourselves to a whole new demographic of non-readers who were a little gullible,” he said. “Before, they were angry because they were being made fun of. Now, they’re angry because they thought 洋葱 was real news.”
Today, the brand has continued to expand and evolve. Some of its original writers have gone on to great success in Hollywood on high-profile comedy teams – which once again underscores 过去其实’ message: “Live your mission. Find the thing you’re compelled to do. And if you’re ever a boss, free your people.”