My first podcast episode aired: December 22nd, 2009. There are a number of reasons why I've been able to host A View from My Window for nine years. There have been MANY people who have mentored me, trained me and listened to me. All of that was the perfect recipe to to start the fire burning and planting the seeds for my intense love of, wanting to be and eventually becoming a journalist. I'm a self-taught journalist who honed my craft by watching others in the field. I knew I needed to see and feel news in action. All the trips to WLFI News 18, WISH-TV and the relationships I have, even to this day, with everyone I met, especially at WLFI, made me know for a certainty that I needed to be a journalist! I really got to see firsthand that being in a TV job is much more than lights, camera, makeup, hair and nice clothes. Those things are certainly a part of the job, but the most important and lasting part is the person you are behind the camera. We're all human and have ''off'' days, but always remembering that you want to be a warm, caring, invested, engaged person to the people you interview, work with or meet. They deserve the gift you bring to them, because when you think about it, whoever is in front of you, is bringing a gift that they possess to you. The gift of telling you who they are and what drives them to do the work they are doing. All these things I keep in mind before recording an interview for my podcast and then I try to use those things while the interview is going on so that I can show them that I care about the things they have shared with me. It's really the most beautiful gift that I can weave together a story so that listeners can get the full picture of who is being interviewed. That is the part that keeps surprising me, even after all these years! I'm grateful that The Arc of Indiana was the organization that was the one to say YES! Thank you to ALL the staff! I have the best co-workers! Thank you to my producer Sally Morris and my sound engineer Bryce Dickerson for helping me with questions, concerns, brainstorming and just plain ' ole fun and laughter!!! Thank you to my mom for always believing in me and never voicing any doubt, but always supporting me! For always being my "backbone"! Thank you to everyone who I have interviewed on the podcast, too! It truly has been a privilege to tell your stories, hear your backgrounds and get to know you better! Thank you goes out to retired executive director of the Arc of Indiana, John Dickerson for being the one to see my potential and RUN with it! You will always have a special place in my heart for how you made my dream a reality! Thank you to the current executive director Kim Dodson who has continued to make me feel valued and appreciated and is always up for an interview whenever we need her and is always such a bright spot whenever I come in the office! Yes, I have the best boss! Thank you to Paul Howell, who became my mentor when he worked as an anchor at WLFI... Thank you so much for getting the ball rolling all those years ago! You were the biggest cheerleader for my dreams back then and it was the strongest motivator to keep my dream alive! Thank you to Ken Oguss who was always ready for the ride! Along with your forward motion, you always helped me slow down and really hone my craft and explore what was possible!! For that I am ever grateful! My first interview where I was being interviewed was with Joe LePage! I was so nervous, because it was my first time being the one interviewed! Looking back on that interview in 2010, I was nervous, and you could see it, but Joe couldn't have been sweeter!! Thank you so much Joe! You interviewing me back then is one of my favorite memories!! It takes a village, and the people I have met that have become part of my village to accomplish my dream of hosting a podcast for 9 years... You ALL are the best! Thank you for coming along for the ride! I am so glad to have come this far...and I can't wait to see the places we go!!
Michelle Fischer is the host of A View from My Window, a podcast produced by The Arc of indiana
