ORIGINAL: kshunter
Michael has stepped out of the box as an official employee of Realtree, but is still contracted with them for many years to come. The reason being is he can now do some things, and not cause any problems for Realtree and other Companies (aka..Contracts). He was getting so many offers, and this affords him the freedom to be sponsored by who he wants. Realtree and Road Trips is still part of that contact.
This is the same thing I heard from a very reliable source.
Look at this this way guys - as an employee of a company you pretty much have to do and say what they want, and accept what they'll pay you for it. Say your salary is X amount per year, and for that amount you have to travel around the country, do seminars, do shows, go here, go there, and you get paid your paycheck and nothing more. Over time you develop a name for yourself, a "following" within the industry so to speak, and more and more people want you to do more and more things, but you're bound by your employment to that particular employer. So you terminate your employment with that employer, become a self-employed contractor, and sell your services to whomever is willing to pay. Your former employer continues to pay you for the services you do for them, but now you can start collecting money from other employers (or sponsors if you will). Now you set your own schedule and your own prices for doing things. There's greater responsibility that comes with managing your own business, your appearances, your costs, etc. However, there is also the potential for greater reward if you do things right.
There's good and bad with being self-employed in this business. Hopefully things work out for Mr. Waddell as there are a lot of people who like him, myself included.