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VETER AN NEWS ANCHOR Linda Yu has covered countless stories over the years, but April 13, 1992—when she spent her entire workday on the air reporting on the Chicago flood—has par- ticular meaning. The next day, Yu recalls, "one woman said to me, 'When bad things happen, you make me feel safe.'" Following her recovery from injuries she sustained in a traffic accident earlier this year, the six-time Emmy Award – win- ning broadcast journalist and mother of two is back behind the news desk to continue her 30th year at ABC-7. "Everybody tells me that when it comes to breaking news and ad-libbing, I'm really good," she says. "I don't know where that came from—maybe my love of talking." Definition of success: That changes over the decades. In the beginning it was "What in my career have I accomplished?" As I got into this business, it was "Have I done any stories that have helped anybody?" Then it became "What kind of mother am I?" Now success for me is "What kind of young people have I raised?" Advice I'd give my 15-year-old self: I was painfully shy—barely spoke above a whisper, was afraid to raise my hand in school—and it took becoming a journalist to start speaking up. I would have st a r ted to do t hat ea rlier. Causes closest to my heart: I cofounded the Asian-American Journalists Association chapter in Chicago, and that's been very important in helping young journalists. Part of the reason I came to Chicago was thinking, Maybe I can open some doors for other Asian-A mericans. What keeps me centered: I used to say to young women, "You can have it all; you just can't have it all at once." You can be single-minded in your career, and then something else comes along and you find balance in other spaces open- ing up. Biggest hero: Bill Fyffe gave me my first job in TV and proceeded to take every one of my scripts and rip it apart. One day I marched into his office and said, "Stop it. I know I'm a good writer." He leaned back in his chair and said, "That's what I was waiting for. I wanted to see you get mad and defend yourself and know that you are good." It made such a difference in my life. LINDAYU Thirty years into her career at ABC-7, this beloved broadcast journalist continues to speak up. MICHIGANAVEMAG.COM 137 134-141_MA_FEAT_PP_May/June_14.indd 137 4/14/14 1:01 PM