Meet Daniel Schmidt

We recently connected with Daniel Schmidt and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Daniel, really happy you were able to join us today and we’re looking forward to sharing your story and insights with our readers. Let’s start with the heart of it all – purpose. How did you find your purpose?

When I was around 9 years old, I watched the U.S. invade Iraq while lying on my grandparents’ living room floor. It was the first night, and grainy, green night vision footage of our military dropping bombs on Baghdad was on CNN. I remember thinking, in a much less refined way than this, how cool it would be to be the person to bear witness to these events and tell the world about it. Fast forward nearly 20 years, and I decided to put my writing skills and ability to talk to nearly anyone to good use and pursue a career in journalism.

Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?

As a freelance journalist, I cover stories ranging from local government meetings, high school sports, violent crime and even the Russo-Ukrainian War. This allows me to meet a broad range of people from around the world and make lifelong friendships while covering stories that matter both locally and globally. While it isn’t the easiest profession to work in, it’s extremely rewarding.

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?

It may sound intuitive, but the most important skill I had even before entering the profession is the ability to make small talk. Being able to make small talk with officials and sources about things not involving the story I’m working on helps build trust. If you’re an aspiring reporter and not great at making small talk, just try. It’s like a muscle: you need to exercise it, and you’ll inevitably need it. The second skill that’s necessary to have as a journalist is research skills. Whether it’s finding specialist sources, making public records requests or finding data to increase your story’s depth, you need to be able to research. Finally, good photography always helps bring your story to life. Classes help you develop techno a proficiency (rule of thirds, controlling shutter speed for artistic effect, etc.), but it’s similar to making small talk: just go out and practice!

Before we go, maybe you can tell us a bit about your parents and what you feel was the most impactful thing they did for you?

I’m from a part of Alabama that borders between rural and suburban. When I was in 8th grade, the school board rezoned the districts to where I had to attend a much smaller school with less resources. In response, my mother went back to college to get a job with Autauga County Schools at a school in Prattville to ensure I continued my education at Prattville High School. I remember hard nights when she attended night classes so I could maintain friendships, participation in athletics and keep taking AP classes.

Contact Info:

Image Credits

Daniel Schmidt

Suggest a Story: BoldJourney is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems,
so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.
Resilience
Betting on the Brightside: Developing and Fostering Optimism

Optimism is like magic – it has the power to make the impossible a reality

Highlighter Series
What’s more important to you—intelligence, energy, or integrity?

There is no one path – to success or even to New York (or Kansas).

Leadership Development
Finding & Living with Purpose

Over the years we’ve had the good fortunate of speaking with thousands of successful entrepreneurs,