The long-time runner is discussing his new e book, The Working Floor, which solely devotes a number of pages to his journalistic profession. Far more of it’s about Thompson’s actions as a aggressive runner (together with setting the American report for males 45 and older in 2021, as excerpted in Fortune), and his relationship along with his father, W. Scott Thompson. In 2017, Thompson eulogized his father—a political science professor, member of the Ford and Reagan administrations and the primary overtly homosexual presidential appointment—as having “lived a life that could fill a dozen novels, or perhaps a Shakespearean drama.” He informed Fortune his father’s destiny was a useful lesson, going from a person with “sort of infinite prospects,” as soon as regarded as potential presidential candidate, to somebody “whose life is complete disarray.” Thompson mentioned his father would at all times speak to him about this dynamic: “He who the gods wish to destroy, they first make promising.”
This offers him perspective, Thompson mentioned.
“I never, even though The Atlantic‘s doing great, I never am too confident that it’s gonna stay that way,” he mentioned. He added he’s discovered to love all of the ache that operating brings him. “I’ve been running most of my life. I started when I was 5 or 6,” Thompson mentioned in a current Zoom name. He mentioned he bought “very serious” in highschool (a passage from the e book describes operating “in a primal way, screaming inside,” on a observe in Deerfield, Mass.) earlier than turning into much more passionate in his 30s, after which once more in his 40s. “It’s become an essential part of my life and something I do every day,” he mentioned, pivoting his digital camera to indicate his operating garments and sneakers, gloves and hat, even his coronary heart price monitor.
On the one hand, he mentioned operating could be a “way to build good mental habits,” a type of meditation or a method to create psychological area through the day. However in one other means, the aches and pains that come from day by day motion are a part of the purpose. “I don’t have a sweeping world philosophy,” Thompson mentioned when requested if operating has a non secular element, but it surely does have “deeper metaphors” that may inform a profession.
“One of the things that I believe—and I believe very strongly—is that, you know, in running, it goes in waves, right?” Thompson makes the purpose that you just simply don’t, as a runner, set a private report for a number of consecutive marathons. “You do well and then you do badly,” and that’s the way in which it’s speculated to go. Typically you do badly since you lose focus, however different occasions it’s since you get plantar fasciitis, otherwise you had the fallacious meal the night time earlier than the race. When you notice it’s important to cope with all of the issues that go fallacious in your operating life, he added, “it changes the way you think about life at all moments.” Whenever you’re up, he added, don’t get too cocky, and while you’re down, don’t get too down.
Which brings us to his well-known firing from 60 Minutes.
Fired on his first day of labor
As Thompson retold the story, he described being summoned to Scheffler’s workplace to debate how he’d work because the affiliate for one of many producers for Steve Kroft, the legendary correspondent. He had moved to New York, purchased “nice suits” and include a great angle, however when Scheffler requested who he was and what had he carried out, Thompson responded merely he hadn’t carried out something in TV. Scheffler requested in response, “Why are you here?”
“I don’t know,” Thompson replied. “You hired me.” Then got here the sudden termination, and Thompson mentioned he didn’t notice simply fairly how fallacious a call that was on the time. “You’re not supposed to just fire someone after you hire them.” He was only a child, and the individuals who employed him had been considering “Whoa, I guess we made a mistake.” Trying again, Thompson mentioned, he had no energy in any respect within the state of affairs.
Thompson laughs when requested what recommendation he’d give to Gen Z, which is famously battling the entry-level job market of 2025, saying it will not be to get fired as shortly and prominently as he did.
“My advice is, if you do get fired, to just keep moving forward and to not to get too down on yourself,” he mentioned.
He repeated the comparatively normal advice to observe your passions in faculty, research what you need, get no matter diploma is “most exciting,” however as soon as you progress past that, actually take into consideration the place your profession ought to be.
“Find a spot to work where you have great colleagues and where you can learn from people who are smarter than you, and go into a place where you will have both colleagues who will rise with you as your career goes on and mentors who will teach you how to be better at your job,” he mentioned. That is what led to his redemption from the 60 Minutes fiasco, he added, a element he doesn’t consider has ever been reported earlier than.
Fifteen years after his humiliating termination, Thompson discovered himself at a Livingston Award ceremony the place his New Yorker work was being praised onstage by a type of good colleagues he discovered after 60 Minutes, and none aside from Kroft was a key participant within the awards. Kroft walked into the elevator and acknowledged Thompson—solely from that night time’s speech, not from Scheffler’s workplace. “I worked for you for an hour, and I got fired,” Thompson informed Kroft in regards to the “funny connection” they really shared.
Kroft’s response was rapid: “Steve looks at me and goes, ‘You’re that kid? I couldn’t believe that [expletive] fired you. And I’m so sorry we didn’t back you up.” (Messages to Steve Kroft weren’t returned.)
On reflection, the expertise gave Thompson what he sees as a wholesome form of paranoia. Even when issues are going nicely, he mentioned, “I never am too confident that it’s gonna stay that way.”
When reminded it’s not not like the plantar fasciitis that may flare up for a runner, Thompson agreed it’s not dissimilar. When he overtrains in operating, he will get tendonitis in his knee, “and I can now feel it coming on pretty early,” which implies he dials again his operating, makes use of a foam curler and places CBD cream on his knee. When plantar fasciitis comes on out of nowhere, he does the same routine, utilizing a foam curler, doing Achilles stretches, placing Castor Oil on his toes when he sleeps.
“There is all of that wind pushing you backwards, but if you are smarter about your training and the way you live and all the choices you make, you can kind of go faster into the headwind,” Thompson mentioned. As in operating and in jobs and in life, “you just have to learn how to cope with it.”
