I am in my mid-20s and a news assistant at a major metropolitan daily. I've been here for two years -- longer than most other news assistants -- and have had the good fortune of learning from a nurturing editor. She has allowed me to grab writing opportunities that other news assistants haven't received, including centerpiece stories and longer features that have gotten some pretty good play.
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Lately, though, I have been questioning my place here. News assistants aren't moved up in this company (you have to get more experience at a smaller daily), but I have no motivation to go that route. I don't know how else to explain this, but ... I feel stuck. I don't thrive on hard news. I love to write, but I don't want to cover courts, crime, cities, etc. When other reporters around me are so excited to grab a breaking story, I feel nothing. When interns come in bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, happy for a chance to write, I feel more and more lost. I just don't flourish in this environment. Also, with cuts at the paper, I barely write anymore. I mostly do event listings and busy work. I just don't feel challenged at all.
I feel in my gut that it's time to spread my wings, but the problem is ... I don't know what I want to do. I am a Type A person, always going after what I want, but in the last six months I've just ... stopped. Completely. I feel unmotivated. I don't want to jeopardize what I've worked for the last two years by fizzling out and thus letting down my editor, but I also can't seem to shake this feeling of dread and complacency. Do I stay, or do I leave without a clear path in my future?
Thanks for listening!
Confused and Concerned
You need some help, and I think it is close at hand.
Talk to your editor. It sounds as though you need to move to a different content area, probably at a different newspaper, where you would be writing.
Don't be afraid to move to a smaller newspaper. Trading circulation size for happiness is rarely a bad thing, especially at this early stage in your career.
The real issue will be deciding whether journalism is really your thing or if you might be happier with another kind of writing. If that's the case, start exploring different ways of writing. But I would not leave the job you're in with nowhere to go. You really need to determine a direction, with some help, before you shove off for anywhere.
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