Anyone here willing to dispense honest career advice through PM?

Wear sunscreen.

 

Carry Germ-X.

 

PM away, Jon

 

Never refuse a breath mint.

Feel free to PM me.

 

If jgmacg's, spnited's, Elliotte's or SoSueMe's advice is different from what I gave you last night, listen to them. [/not sarcasm]

 

Most of us save the sarcasm for the main board.

 

Feel free to PM me.

And remember, like one of my high school coaches said, "If you can't get rid of it with Ajax and steel wool, you don't want it."

 

In general, just remember that you can't get in this for money. We are for the most part underpayed, overworked, underappreciated and generally trusted less than the cheaters and liars we cover.

Also, the hours are vastly different than what most people work, which can hurt your social life if you let it but doesn't have to. That's the greatest benefit SportsJournalists.com has for me, is when I get off work, am too wound up to sleep and my girlfriend and/or buddies are asleep. I honestly like this board more for the communication with other people who have weird hours than the job-related stuff. If I was the kind of person who could go right to sleep after work, I would do what many in the biz do and keep my schedule as close to most of society's as I could.

As someone with a girlfriend who works basically 9-to-5, I have no idea how people with spouses and children do it. I am really, really worried about that time when it comes.

It's easy to cut corners, follow the pack and lose your love of overall sports in this business, but do whatever you can to avoid that. Most of us could get different jobs for better money, but we do this because we love it. If that ever changes with me, I'll get out of the business, because I'd rather be miserable with money than miserable without it.

You have to love this job. Luckily most of us on this board do, as far as I can tell.

 

Two-plus decades of writing, desking, and suffering some of the fools on this board for a time as an editor. Fire away my way.

 

hit me if you wish, rowdy roddy.