IT’S HAPPENING! Everybody stay calm! I’m actually working.
Funnily enough, it doesn’t feel so strange to be doing actual pre-reporting work. It’s not anything I haven’t done before. I’ve prepared emails and I’ve researched players and stats; but it doesn’t feel out of the ordinary.
Last week, including the days leading up to today, I was a bit nervous about getting started. From my previous post, you might not think I was that worried to get started, but in all truth, I was.
I was scared to get that first phone call out of the way. I was scared to send an email, to report, and to put my name on it. It seemed a lot more daunting than it should have. But, I have gotten through that barrier and I feel relaxed once again.
But can a journalist ever be relaxed? In certain terms, yes and no. Yes, because it’s ok to be the connection from people to pages and it’s ok to feel nervous about that. But, news never stops; nor does life.
A journalist should not miss an opportunity to report due to lack of care or want. Time must be divided to provide to work for all necessities. But, when you are hungry, you must eat. When you are tired, you must sleep.
Don’t kill yourself over journalism, rather kill the bad habits that threaten yourself and prevent journalism.
A video of a professor teaching his class comes to mind when I talk about juggling stress.
Enjoy this video as much as I did. It taught me a lesson that really hadn’t been taught to me up until this point in my life. It’s ok to be alive. Stuff happens that we can’t control and life can get stressful. Though once we relax, choose our battles, and choose our happiness, life becomes balanced.
I admit, this became a lot more about stress coping over my first feature story. But, I want to spread a lesson I’ve only recently learned to those who might not have or needed a reminder. Limit your stress, don’t limit your life.
Coming soon will be my first featured story as a reporter. Stay tuned and stay calm.
~DS
The Danny Diaries 