Professional news time!

I'm starting a new job on Monday, but it's not in journalism nor is it related to what I went to school for.

I obviously love journalism and writing, but this is a job that is hard to find: full-time, decent pay, work from home and benefits. After not having a job for a year, I'm excited to get back to work

I was *super* hesitant to tell people about it, especially my friends and colleagues in the industry because I was afraid of judgement; that I wasn't 'committed' enough to my work to risk unemployment for a long time to do what I want to do.

I have a fairly large student loan, very little savings, and no plan for retirement. I have to remind myself it's okay to put the adult and responsible needs first before my dreams to keep me on my feet.

And it's very hard to remind myself of this seeing people get hired out of their internships or get jobs right out of grad and I haven't gotten that chance. But it's absolutely okay to take a break from this industry and do things that are unrelated to your field or degree

This doesn't mean I don't want to still go into journalism! This job will allow me to gain really good work experience and help me a lot financially — plus everyone on my team seems really lovely and I'm just excited to have *a job.*

Anyway, this is a reminder to current students or recent grads you are not any less valuable nor is your degree rendered worthless if you don't use it immediately or don't get that dream job. There is SO much time left!