Im stuck!!!At this point in my life....well lets just say things seem to be getting a little complicated. I work as a supervisor at The Sullivan Diagnostic Center. I absolutely love my job and the individuals I work with. I am also responsible for the daily medications, activity schedule, behavior data, and much more that must be monitored and documented. At this point in my life though I want to do what is my passion. That being writing. I love sports and I love writing. With the knowledge that I have when it comes to sports and the skills I hold when it comes to writing. I don't see why I can't make my passion a career. The problem lies that I am a single 20 year old male. I also don't live at home and have been working and going to school most my whole life. It's hard to go back to school and work full time to pay for the everyday things people have in their life. I need help! Is it possible for me to land the job of my dreams without finishing up school?? Am I making a wise career choice maybe switching things up in my life?? Why is it so hard for someone who has talent, to get a job they are talented for....without the college title?? Please and Thank you. Is it possible for me to land the job of my dreams without finishing up school?? Is it POSSIBLE- maybe. Unlikely- absolutely. Frankly, getting a job as a sports writer isn't going to be easy even if you have a degree and experience to bolster it up. If that's what you really want to do however, the first step is absolutely going to be the degree. And you need the degree because you're not as expert at writing as you think you are. Not only are there a number of grammatical and spelling type errors in your post, but the way you put your words and thoughts together isn't all that impressive. If this is your passion, you can learn the technical skills to pull off what's in your head and make your dream a reality, but you're going to have to learn your craft first. If you don't care enough about it to learn to do it properly, you're never going to make it in such a competitive field. In the meantime, find a way to get more writing experience. That will probably mean as a volunteer (on top of your job and school). Volunteer to write and distribute the Little League newspaper (even if it is an online journal) or sending the Little League press releases to the penny saver. If there's a minor league team near you, do the same with them. Things like that will help to give you something to show a potential first employer. Tess My opinion; would be to finish school. I know it suck, but bite the bullet. It will be worth it. You are still pretty young. If you are already thinking of changing your major. Try and look for a major with a little more options. In my experience, I went to trade school even though I wasn’t for sure. Now nine years later I’m trying to get out and it’s not that easy. I did not finish school and I’m still young (29). I so wish I did. Credits don’t usually transfer after so many years. You never know what kind of bumps life will bring you in the future. They can affect everything. So, I would say do it now while you can and everything you have worked for so far counts. Good Luck! Tim (curkys) Agree with what Tess said. Your best bet is to go to school and take some writing classes where your writing will be critiqued and graded. Always a humbling experience;) Writing well is a lot like making a quilt; it takes skill and a great eye, or ear, as the case may be, to put together something that grabs people's attention and isn't dinged up with minor errors. Without a college degree, it is possible but unlikely that you could get a sports reporting job at a small newspaper. You might have to start out as a volunteer, as Tess suggested. If you want to be a sports reporter, the reality is, it's pretty dull. Just the basic who, what, when, where, why, how. A sports columnist, though, has a lot more freedom to write opinion pieces, profiles on local athletes, whatever. Regardless of what kind of sports writing you want to do, I'd recommend reading everything you can by really good sports writers, like Frank Deford and Roger Angell. Esquire magazine also has some very good sportswriters and columnists. So does Sports Illustrated. There's also an annual anthology called "The Best American Sports Writing" that is always exceptional. Your local newspaper probably has good sports columnists. The best way to become a better writer is to read a lot and learn to recognize what separates good writers from the riffraff. It's great that you have a job you love. It's also great that you don't live at home;) It's also great that you've been self-supporting for such a long time. I suspect that if you want to pursue the writing thing, you'll find a way to do it. Good luck. Thankyou for youre advice. Thankyou also for being such a positive person. It is great that I live at home and that I have been independent for so long. But I feel Ive missed out on some oppertunities. Posted a new one. If you'd like comment that one...need advise..lol Thank you.
@str8upjets A couple of options for you that will help you get started on following your passion 1) Most local small-town newspapers can always use extra writing help. That's exactly how I got started. I worked part-time as a sports writer for my hometown daily newspaper during my summer and winter breaks from college. I wasn't covering pro events, but I did get great experience reporting on Little League games and high school sports. Why not contact the editors of some local papers and ask if you can work as a stringer/freelancer one or two nights a week covering games? Don't expect to get paid much, but use the opportunity as a stepping stone to a potential new career. 2) Start a sports blog. Use free tools such as Blogger.com or WordPress.com, and you can have a functional blog online in 5 or 10 minutes. And since it's your blog, you can write about whatever you like -- local events, professional sports, etc. Mix in game stories and opinion pieces to test and improve your writing skills. Hope this helps! --Bryan Person CommunityEditor
Bryan makes some great points based on his real-world practical experience. In sports parlance, "be the ball." A lot of people go around saying that they are "interested" or "passionate" about something. Set yourself apart by actually practicing what you preach. Do the thing you want to do, without getting paid for it. Volunteer. Write on spec. Create your own blog (an enormously powerful self-publishing tool). At the very least, you will be doing the thing you are interested in, as a hobby. Then, if you can leverage it into a career move, that's extra. Next, you have labeled two areas you want to combine. Sports and writing. Do some mind-mapping and think about separating them. Could you somehow work in sports...how? Could you do some form of non-sports writing? How? You have an ideal you want to go for, which is great, but maybe there are alternative routes to get there. Lastly, I do suggest heeding the repeated advice in this thread on finishing school. It is really the price of admission into almost anything these days. Whatever you end up doing, not having finished is going to continue to limit and hurt you. I have senior clients who still have to finesse it when they make job moves years later. Get it done. You will be grateful in the long run. Ian Christie Career Changers Coach
Thankyou for the advice. I do have a blog on myspace. But to create one else where is great idea. I appreciate the advice. Especially from someone who does it.
str8upjets, I'd also echo the sentiments of others on this board in urging you to finish your degree. Whether you stay with Sullivan, move into sports writing, or switch to another career at some point, an undergraduate degree is essential. You'd have a hard time moving up in most fields without one. Good luck! | |
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