Get a Life

[Kyung]

It's been a while since I've handed out unsolicited advice to newbie reporters aka what I wish I knew about reporting my first year out. So here's some more. Feel free to turn a deaf ear.

This a great profession. We have a lot flexibility. You're choosing to be buried under work or not. That being said, there are times when you've got to take a moment to breathe. If that means turning down a job bec you're already buried under transcripts or you want a vacation, I am hereby giving you permission to say no to that job. If that's too harsh for you, you don't want to say "no" to an agency, just tell them you're already booked. Even if they're your regular agency, if they're a good agency, they will respect your request for a day off.

This job can quickly become 24/7. The first year out you're learning so many new things and you want to work and you're ready to work. But this job is stressful and physically demanding. There are tons of reporters out there who have repetitive stress injuries. I write those words not to scare you but to make you realize that is a fact of our profession.

The way to avoid repetitive stress injuries is to take care of you. Get a hobby. Whether it's yoga, working out, photography, reading, traveling. You've got to have something outside the profession. If you're on the keyboard and writer 24/7, that's a lot of stress on you.

If you have a family, you've got to make them a priority as well. If you're always in your office working on a transcript, your significant othery family other might start to resent your job. Yes, your family is not going to understand the stress of your job. They're not going to understand the deadlines. They're not going to understand the crappy day with the technical mishaps or the attorney who doesn't pay or the witness who would not shut up. That's what we're here for. We do understand and sympathize. We do want to hear your horror stories. I'm not saying don't tell your family about your stress. But things linger long after our family is done hearing about them. If you just can't let it go. If you're obsessing over something that's trivial, bring it to the right forum. Our profession can be ver isolating. And it's not good to keep it all bottled up.

Anyway, I want new reporters to enjoy the profession. To be reporters for a long time. To be healthy. And one way to do that so you don't burn out is to have outside interest. It will make you a more interesting person and a better reporter in the long run. The work will always be there. Take a moment to enjoy what you've achieved and the fruits of your Labor.

Stepping off my soapbox. Happy Labor Day.

[from Debra Maples]

Hey, since I'm just finishing a scoping course and classify myself as a newbie, I queried on newbie and found this thread.

And, I'm a little curious about no mention of the option to lighten the load of cr's by the use of scopists/proofreaders. Since I'm joining that profession (scopists/proofreaders), I was thinking any overworked cr's would do so, especially when they realized the workload was becoming a problem both emotionally and physically.

I mean, I know that cr's most probably don't want to "outsource" any portion of the job but, when keeping up with the workload becomes an issue and you can turn over more jobs by outsourcing some of the load, I would think it would be a viable economic option (and am banking on it!).

Just wondering.....

Debra

[Ann Morales]

I took a five-year break from reporting for the very reason that I couldn't say no to a job. Before I knew it, I was working 24/7 and getting very little sleep and rest. My children were both still in diapers. I was a wreck!! I was so stressed out my doctor advised a career change and I took his advice at that point. Best thing I ever did! I joined the mortgage industry for a while and came to love that profession and did extremely well in it.

Well, now that that industry is suffering, I have returned to reporting. I have learned MANY lessons because of all this. As a mortgage professional, never having sold anything in my life, I became a very good sales person and was a top producer at my company. Along with that I learned so much about running your business.

When I first started reporting eight years ago, I was young and naive. I'm so glad I took that five-year break and ventured off to something else that would eventually benefit me in reporting. I now treat reporting like a business. It's MY business, MY choice to take on as much or as little work as I please. I'm the boss!!! That alone has made reporting practically stress-free for me, believe it or not. I can't begin to tell you what a huge difference I feel from the first time around to this time, all because I am handling it differently. I even asked my husband, is this the same reporting I used to do years ago?? What a difference!

I had a reporter friend of mine whom I hadn't talked to in years contact me via e-mail. She was so stressed out and now suffers from depression because of her heavy workload. So I asked her what she was doing. Basically everything I used to do. I hear too many of these stories from a lot of friends who end up sadly hating reporting due to this when in reality it doesn't have to be this way.

On the other hand, I had dinner a few days ago with a good reporter friend of mine whom I hadn't seen in a while. She and I are very alike in personality and the way we handle things. She has her own clients now and takes occasional work with agencies, makes really good money, yet tells me it's the easiest job ever. Why? Again, because she is in full control of her business.

I urge you to all take a good look at your profession and how you can handle things differently. I have been doing that all weekend. It's so empowering to know that we have such a wonderful job that allows us to pick and choose. I feel so fortunate and wouldn't have it any other way. I love my job!! Attitude is everything in anything you do.

Enjoy the rest of your Labor Day weekend!!

[Anthony D. Frisolone]

Amen, Kyung. Newbie or not, we should all follow your advice.