As journalists, we’re lugging around all kinds of gear and paperwork, mostly to make us look really busy. Sometimes we really are.

So what kind of stuff do you lug around to help you do your job? Here’s my stuff

Notebook: Natch. You never know when you’re gonna get a callback or a tip on your cell phone while you’re driving. It’s always nice to be able to pull over and at least take down whatever info you can.

Macbook: I literally use this thing as a notebook. I always have a word processor open, and I type almost as fast as some people can talk, and it helps me formulate my stories better if I’m able to actually visualize how the words appear written out. Plus it has an airport. And wherever wireless isn’t available…

Modem: I lug around my Clearwire modem, which doesn’t require a line out to log onto the ‘Net. Instead, alls I need is an outlet to charge the modem, and I just plug it into my laptop. It works like a cell phone, picking up signal practically everywhere.

Recorder: I used to not rely on these things. I didn’t like how it can malfunction sometimes, and that it could run out of batteries. I also personally thought that I could zone out when I’m not concentrating intensely on what’s being said. But eventually I stopped being stubborn, and I purchased one. It’s helped out immensely, especially for those way-too-often times where there just isn’t a place to sit so I can type on my laptop.

Two cell phones: One personal, and one from the company. My company phone’s voicemail has my personal cell, so that way I’m the easiest person to get a hold of.

So how did you get your start?

By start, I mean how’d you end up discovering journalism. Although working journalists may be considered professionals, I agree with Sonya that we will always be lifetime students, so I’m wondering when all of you became students of our craft.

Mine happened when my mother decided I should get a job. She rudely awoke me one morning and said she set me up for a job interview, even though I didn’t even know about it until two hours prior.

I got dressed up and went in for my interview, which was for an internship at the Pacific Daily News. I didn’t know anything, nor did I even care, but for some reason that was interpreted as potential and I was hired.

As I towed the line on my internship, I realized it was not only nice earning a few bucks, but I also didn’t suck. I’m not going to toot my own horn and say I was good, but I got a lot of words of encouragement from my parents, my peers and my teachers. Everything snowballed afterward and here I am.

So I just want to know how you guys started. Some people go back as early as middle school.

I’m starting up a news blog for my paper pretty soon covering my beat.
Yes I’m a blogger on here, but I’m looking to all of you for advice in blogging about your beat.
How should you write about something you cover – while maintaining your unbiased status?
How do you write with comedy while not coming across as cynical?
Please post some of your favorite news blogs and share some ideas!
I’ll get the ball rolling with one of my favorite blogs – Total Buzz. The bloggers there post fun, insightful and interesting articles and topics.

Everyone knows that mentors are imporant. They help you become a better person and journalist with their teachings.
But it’s also important to find people to look up to – people you find inspiring. These people don’t necessarily know you look up to them, and they don’t need to be teaching you to inspire you.
My list is pretty long, but it includes: Christine Tatum (one of the best SPJ presidents ever), Mark Scarp (one of the most inspiring people I’ve met), Greg Hardesty (fabulous writer at the Register), Keith Sharon (a very talented writer who taught me how to write like I tap dance), Deke and Morgan Lightholder (my dance teachers who prove you can work and dance), Genelle Belmas (a very, very, very inspiring teacher), Paul Danison and Chris Meyer (two of my superior editors – both accept new ideas and are web revolutionaries), and more, and more…..
Sure I could go on and on – but most of you don’t know these people.
The important thing here is that I have a ton of people I respect, watch and follow – whether they know it or not.
You should find some too!
PS: Please share who you follow and why.

Q.

Like many young reporters, I’m starting at a small daily.
My newspaper has a policy of setting a limit of work hours at 40 hours a week for reporters who are not on salary, which includes me.
I have aspirations to work at a large metro paper one day.
I’m wondering if working 40 hours a week is really enough experience to prepare me for a demanding position in the future.

A.

Well I’ll tell you the on and off record answers.

On the record: If they don’t want you to work more than 40 hours, don’t.

Off the record: I think it sucks that they are not willing to pay over time. This is because any true young and hungry reporter will work more than 40 hours. You have three options.

1. Only work 40 hours – but work like crazy. This would protect your integrity of being paid for the hours you work.

2. Work more than 40 hours – but only write down 40 hours. I know, I know editors and especially HR DO NOT want to hear that but it’s the truth. I’m not saying that you always need to work more than 40 to do a good job, but it happens to most of us.

3. Find a different job where they understand that you will work over sometimes and that they should pay you for that.

At my job I am allowed to clock over time. My policy is that if I work an hour over – in order to do something not required for my job I don’t put it down. But, if I work late (like when I covered a 17 hour City Council meeting) I put down almost all the time because it was required for my job.

I’m sure others out there have different policies – I really think that this is not an HR issue, but is an ethical issue. As young journalists just starting out we face the issues of working hard to improve our skills and being taken advantage of. I think the best rule in this fine line is to get a job working for an understanding editor. My editors, for example, understand that fine line and help me juggle it. And after weeks where my editor knew I worked way over he told me to clock it. A tip to editors: that made me feel super good – I then didn’t feel guilty clocking over time (which young journalists feel sometimes) AND it made me feel good that he noticed how hard I had worked.

Please, everyone, share your advice!

I read somewhere that the longer a person works at a company, the less they interact with new people, and that new hires are the ones who spend the most time greeting others and gaining friendships.

There are certainly people who keep to themselves but many of the people at my work, even those who’ve been here decades, are friendly and willing to be unofficial mentors to new hires.

Working at a place with so many friendly people is what makes going to work worthwhile (oh, and the great service we provide to the public, of course). Mine can’t be the only friendly newsroom around.

Do any of you work around nice people? Or have you worked at a place that was not-so-accommodating to helping out the new hires?

What’s one of the best ways to stay inspired? Build an inspiring environment!
Right now I’m working on that at my newspaper. I’m working with some other people who want to improve our web presence and together we’re building a team to do just that.
I think the important aspect in inspiration is not inspiring someone – but continuing to inspire someone. I hope my new group of web revolutionaires will do just that.
Please share what you’ve done at your workplace to stimulate inspiration for web building.

Next week a co-worker and I are scheduled to give an early morning presentation to a group of third, fourth and fifth-graders. We’ll give them an overview of how the paper comes out and what a typical day is like at the newspaper, and explain how we got to the jobs we’re in now.

Aside from the basics, what would *you* share with the kids?

I’m a very lucky person. I’ve known what I wanted my career to be since elementary school. Not many people, even after college, know what they want to do with their lives. I feel blessed to have chosen a great profession and to be able to stick with it.

I’ve wanted to be a journalist since the sixth grade, and have followed that dream. There’s something about knowing that your work can really affect people and create positive change that makes the job worthwhile. It takes a lot of people to get a story from its conception to publication and I’m proud to be one of the hands that touches an article before its final release into the world.

We’re very lucky to know that although the news may change form, people will always need news and the government will always need a watchdog.

In older films we are shown smoky newsrooms, reporters puffing cigarettes in the elevator, and editors and writers (occasionally if not often) drinking on the job. In books (and maybe I’ve been reading a bit too much Hunter S. Thompson lately) we get images of gruff and jaded journalists, or young journalists on their way to becoming gruff and jaded, who drink and have nicotine addictions.

Now, of course we cannot believe all the stereotypes, but I find that in these health-conscious days absolutely none of that is true. Smoking is prohibited in our building (though at the old building, I swear the elevator still smelled like smoke), and our union has a strict dry-workplace policy.

In talking to older reporters, they lament the old days when everyone went out for a drink after work at the seedy pub down the street. Now, I don’t wish my profession to be as depraved as the stereotypes, but if those were the ‘good old days’ I’m bummed I missed it.