Might be leaving the business, need suggestions about new careers

I know I probably will get bashed for being a quitter, but I've pretty much decided that sports writing isn't going to be my career. Coming in, I knew there was low pay, odd hours and almost no social life to speak of, but it didn't hit me until I started my first job two months ago -- I realized how much I was missing and might miss because of all these factors. Simply put, I'm not happy with my life right now, and I don't imagine it getting much better. The first couple months of a job are supposed to be the most enjoyable, and I haven't really enjoyed it at all.

So I need some advice from anyone who has ever left or thought about leaving the business as far as other possible career paths with a journalism degree that provides decent pay and normal 9-to-5 working hours. True, I might not be happy working in an office during the day, but the opportunity to come home to a family dinner and have the rest of the evening to pursue my other interests would more than make up for that.

I hope you all understand my rationale. I really enjoy sports writing, but for me, the cons of the job greatly outweigh the pros.

Thanks in advance for your help, and Merry Christmas.

 

TN,
We've all had those thoughts, but it takes a mature person to act on them and not commit to staying miserable. I can't suggest a career or anything because I don;t know your situation, just understand that whatever road yhou follow doesn't guarantee happiness either. Only family and friends really have that effect.

Good luck with everything, and feel free to message me to keep me abreast of your progress.

Again, good luck and happy holidays...

 

I doubt you'll get much of a bashing. There's been a fair few threads on this before, most of which contain one very important point -- life's too short to be unhappy. If you know the demands of the business cause you grief, then it's only natural you try to find something else. You're not going to change the business, so you might as well do what you can on your end.

These threads should give you a good start:
http://www.sportsjournalists.com/forum/threads/44600/
http://www.sportsjournalists.com/forum/threads/48302/
http://www.sportsjournalists.com/forum/threads/50479/

 

Yeah, man, no bashing here. Wanting a 9-to-5 job that allows more time with the family is something many of us desire.

 

I left the business, too, but I'll disagree with you on one thing:

The first couple of months in a job aren't supposed to be the most enjoyable at all. Generally speaking, they're going to suck out loud.

That said, I'm not going to advise you to "stick it out," because, if you're already aware of all the downsides (pay, hours, etc.), well, it's probably not going to get a lot better. Good luck in your search.

 

i left journalism earlier this year. went from copy editing/design to proofreading at an ad agency. 9-to-5, better pay, better benefits. might be worth a look- there's always copywriting opportunities.

 

i left journalism, went to law school and now i'm a lawyer. it has its ups and downs. sometimes i miss the rush of writing a gamer on deadline. there are nights when i drag my weary body home from a long day of staring at a computer monitor writing mundane pleadings and researching arcane and absurdly complicated legal doctrines that i long for the days when the worst thing about work was watching football practice in the bitter cold or spending three hours in an MLB clubhouse waiting for player X to show up at his locker. on the other hand, my paycheck is higher (although not nearly as high as you'd think), people will never stop needing lawyers and there are plenty of challenging and interesting things about my job.

 

I've been looking into technical writers, copywriters, communication specialists jobs on Simply Hired, Monster and Indeed, and all of them seem to require anywhere from 2-8 years of previous experience. How is one supposed to go about getting one of these jobs if he can't find a place for entry level positions?

Basically, how do you get that first job outside of a newspaper if all you have is a couple years as a sports writer?

 

You can always go to newside. Other than a couple of meetings a month, I'm home for dinner quite often.

 

Nine to five hours, good pay, benefits and a social life? Good luck with your search, man.

 

Damn Quitter!


Just kidding. Figured you might start to wonder about us if none of the bashing started.

FileNotFound is right. I'm not sure where you got the idea that the first few months on a new job should be the most enjoyable. In my experience, it is the exact opposite. Things get better as you settle in.

But if you really want out, understand that you may be back at square one. But given that this is your first job, at least you are young enough that it isn't such a big deal to do that. It is hard to make a suggestion if you don't know what you want to do. I would suggest keeping the job until you have something else lined up. It is definitely easier to find work when you already have a job.

Best of luck.

 

OK, so it might have been wrong of me to say the first few months are the easiest because I can understand how they could be pretty damn difficult.

Don't get me wrong, it's not the specific position itself or the paper. I've met some great people who really like what they're doing and are pretty good at it. But for me, writing about sports isn't enough to make up for how little I'm getting paid and the late hours. And as I'm sure you all know, things aren't miraculously going to change -- I'm not going to be making $50,000 in five years and only work days. So I figured that while I'm young, it's best to look elsewhere before I find myself stuck and start telling myself, "I'm too old to start a new career path or go back to school."