Okay, I get it. Journalists are all about getting to the bottom of investigations, catching the next big story, and securing impressive clips. That is definitely important and a central facet of the field. However, we should not put aside our own mental and physical health for these stories.

I understand journalists make a lot of sacrifices. Some lose their lives reporting on wars abroad or nearby conflicts. We should always be willing to keep our sources safe and we are particularly conscious of preserving the identities of our anonymous sources.

But, we cannot report to the best of our ability if we are constantly wearing ourselves down and burning out. Journalists need breaks too. Journalists need to make time for meals, family, and relaxing time. We should be using our vacation time, too.

A journalist is often shown in popular cultural to be the workaholic and many times, the person who is married to their job. Some journalists are shown practically living in the newsroom. This is not healthy. Whole, happy, human beings live a balanced lifestyle.

Of course, a balanced lifestyle is easier said than done, especially for student journalists. Between hunting down the stories, classes, and other extracurriculars, it seems as though our personal health takes the back seat. Journalists are often rewarded for staying up all night, skipping meals, and putting their health in jeopardy as long as they are producing quality content.

A student who works constantly until they are forced to stop by an illness, possibly severe enough to place them in the hospital, are praised endlessly for their dedication to the field.

But, why praise that? Yes, it is excellent to be that passionate about your field. But is it impossible to be passionate about your field and other things – like family, your health, your friends?

Why is our culture so focused on productivity that we forget about our wellbeing? How can we possibly go on being productive if we work ourselves to nothing?

There needs to be a balance.

We need to stop believing that it is okay to hurt our physical and mental health for the sake of our profession. We need to stop telling ourselves that this is, in fact, a proper demonstration of our dedication.

How do we find the balance?

I am still working on that myself. It is hard. I know this. But, it has to be discussed more. For professions within the field of communications, we do not see this discussion as a priority. It is often scoffed at by students and professors alike.

There are a lot of starting points to finding balance and from there, you will probably face a lot of ups in downs, but it is well worth it to secure your wellbeing.

I am a member of many organizations. Most of them are career-focused. I became heavily involved in a running club, however, because it is a natural stress-reliever. I pencil in time during my busy schedule to exercise. Not only is my body releasing endorphins during my run that will naturally make me happier, but I am surrounded by friends. I schedule time during my day to spend with friends or call home to my family. I always try to get at least eight hours of sleep and I typically try not to skip meals throughout the day.

This is easy when my schedule is light, and I am not overloaded with homework, but the real challenge is when I am drowning in work. When push comes to shove, most of us decide to cut out some of the most important things like eating or sleeping. I am learning to instead, give myself a break and set boundaries. I will not stay up until five in the morning working homework. If I do not finish a reading, it will not be the end of the world. I prioritize the things that absolutely need to be done to make sure that when I run out of time, I am only tabling minor things such as readings that do not have any graded homework attached.

Once I get into the workforce with bills to pay and a family of my own, I will have to start over again with finding my work life balance but at that point in my life, it will be even more important. Out of things I would regret at the end of my life, I am positive I will have more regrets from missing out on time with friends and family rather than missed opportunities related to my career field. So many people realize this too late.

While I am not saying journalism or any other work is unimportant, I am saying it should not be the core of our life. We can put in quality, hard work without killing ourselves. Our work will be better if we take the breaks we need to avoid burnout. If we do not take needed breaks, we will start to crash, and our productivity will decrease.

Taking care of yourself is productive too.