Journalists & Work: Separating your career from your identity
Feb 16 2024
WHEN:
Feb 16, 2024 at 12:00pm
CONTACT INFO:
Bara Vaida
MORE INFO:
Journalism Institute
For many of us, journalism is not just a job; it is a calling. And the high intensity nature of the work of a journalist often means that our job becomes a central part of our identity.
That might be fine when we are loving what we do, but what happens if you don’t anymore? What if you were laid off, or your news organization downsizes and you have to watch colleagues leave while you take on more work? What then? Do you stay in journalism, or pivot to something else? What if these questions and challenges feel like you don’t know who you are anymore?
Many journalists may be asking themselves these very questions, especially after a brutal January when the industry laid off hundreds of our colleagues. But for a vital society, and democracy, we need journalists to continue to do their work.
Join the National Press Club Journalism Institute at noon ET on Friday, Feb. 16, for a conversation with a journalist and a psychologist on managing your career in a time of media turmoil. Registration is open.
In this 45-minute webinar, we’ll explore how to disentangle your identity and feelings of self-worth from work, as well as questions to ask yourself as you think about your journalism career in the short and long term.
Participants will also learn:
- How to know when passion for your work crosses into overtaking your identity
- How to cope with the personal pain of a layoff and questions to ask yourself in the time after
- How to manage the potential of burnout due deadlines and media turmoil
- Where to find resources for support, whether it is a career coach, a therapist or a support network
Speakers include:
- Dr. Janna Koretz, psychologist and the founder of Azimuth
- Kate Woodsome, journalist and filmmaker
About the speakers
Janna Koretz, Psy.D, is a psychologist and the founder of Azimuth, which provides therapy focused on the unique challenges of individuals in high-pressure careers, including burnout, values, and career enmeshment. Her work has been noted in Harvard Business Review and The Wall Street Journal.
Most recently with The Washington Post, Kate Woodsome pioneered a mental health column and managed a short documentary film unit for Post Opinions. She was part of the team that received the Pulitzer Prize for Public Service and the Ben Bradlee Award for Courage in Journalism for coverage of the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol. Woodsome previously ran a global current affairs program on Al Jazeera English television and spent her early career as a radio and print reporter in Asia with the Voice of America and Cambodia Daily newspaper.
About the National Press Club Journalism Institute
The National Press Club Journalism Institute promotes an engaged global citizenry through an independent and free press, and equips journalists with skills and standards to inform the public in ways that inspire a more representative democracy. As the non-profit affiliate of the National Press Club, the Institute powers journalism in the public interest.
The Institute depends on grants, foundation funds, and contributions from individuals like you. Your donation today allows the Institute to offer the majority of its programming at no cost.