Another look at Darren Davis

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: Rejection gave radio exec time to prepare : : Working in his dad's bakery opened Darren Davis's eyes to a radio career. : "As a reward, when my dad delivered doughnuts for disc jockeys at the local radio station, he'd let me go with him," said Davis. "That's where I fell in love with radio—the magic behind the mike." : After his freshman year in college, Davis interned at that same station. Starting at 5 a.m., he would write for the morning news, and in early evening he would host a two-hour country show at its FM station. : In the fall, shortly after Davis returned to George Washington University in Washington, D.C., he got an unexpected phone call. : "Someone from WASH-FM said she'd received my application for an unpaid internship," said Davis. "I'd never sent them an application. Nonetheless, I agreed to be interviewed. I still don't know how that came together." : Davis snagged the internship as morning show helper, and six months later he parlayed it into a 20-hour-a-week job as the station's general programming assistant. Four years later, he became program director. : Now 35, Davis is Chicago-based senior vice president of programming for Clear Channel Radio's 148 mid-major-market stations. : * * * * * * * * * * * : Q: As a youngster, did you think you would have a radio career? : A: No. I never thought I could make a decent living in radio. : I was bent on being the next senator from California. I figured Washington was the place to go to school. George Washington University was the only school to which I applied. : Q: How many years of experience did your four jobs during college equate to? : A: By the time I graduated, I'd accrued at least two years of full-time work experience. It put me about 10 years ahead of my contemporaries. : Today, I see so many people who want to savor the college experience and then figure out what they want to do. They seem to be so far behind the curve. : Q: Why leave Washington for Houston? : A: I had gotten bored. The Washington station was so successful it ran itself. It got boring. : Around the same time, WLIT's program director here in Chicago was fired. I wanted that job but was told I was too young, at 24. : I pouted, stomped my feet, huffed and puffed, and talked to folks at CBS. They had a Houston station that needed fixing and offered me the job. : Q: Today how do you feel about not getting the WLIT job? : A: If I'd have gotten it, today I'd be working in a very small town. I wasn't ready for it. I would have been eaten alive. It worked out for the best. : Q: What's the secret to being a young boss? : A: There's a fine line. You want to be friendly with your team members, but at the end of the day you're still the leader. : For every disciplinary conversation with somebody, I aim to have 10 to 15 non-work-related conversations with them—about themselves, their families. If I can succeed there, disciplinary conversations take on a whole new tone. : When something's gone wrong I want people to leave my office feeling better than when they came in. : Q: How do you balance work-life? : A: This job is like being a doctor. You're always working, 24/7. It's a lifestyle. You choose it because you want to be constantly engrossed. : It's hardly working, though, compared to my dad, on his feet 14 hours a day, or my mom, who works 10 hours daily as a bookkeeper. : Any time I want, I could turn it off, but I find it more relaxing to have my BlackBerry on all of the time, dealing with things as they come up. : --------------------------------- : Step by step : : 2008: Senior programming vice president, Clear Channel Radio, Chicago : 2005-08: Programming vice president, Clear Channel Radio : 2002-05: Programming vice president, Clear Channel Radio, Detroit : 1999-2002: Group program director, CBS Radio, Houston : 1998-99: Operations manager, WASH-FM & WGAY-FM, Washington, D.C. : 1997-98: Program director, WASH-FM1995-97: Assistant program director, WASH-FM1995: Bachelor's degree, George Washington University, Washington1994: Programming assistant, morning show producer, WASH-FM1993: Programming and promo assistant, Monday-Friday overnight disc jockey, WASH-FM : 1992: Summer intern, KNCO-AM & FM, Grass Valley, Calif. : 1989-91: Clerk, Ridge Racquet Club, Grass Valley : 1985-87: After-school clean-up, Pastry Mill Bakery, Nevada City, Calif. : (Chicago Tribune)

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