Editor’s Note: The National Press Club Journalism Institute is committed to providing journalists resources and connections that support their personal and professional lives. In 2025, we are collaborating with several groups to widen those networks of support. We invited Lucas-Matthew Marsh to share self-care advice for emerging journalists and how the Journalist Recovery Network can help.
Congratulations. This is your moment — take it all in.
Some of you might be starting internships or taking a break to go travel. However you choose to start this next chapter, do it on your own terms.
That said, I want to speak directly to the journalists like me, those who were rejected from every job they applied for and couldn’t afford to travel.
Ironically, my graduation ceremony fell on the one-year anniversary of the day I decided to quit drinking. I had never felt more confident about the journey ahead of me than I did while walking across that stage, accepting my diploma, and reflecting on everything I had accomplished in the past year.
I want to share some of the lessons I’ve learned since then. The lessons that have helped me face the hardest challenges posed by this industry and kept me sober.
First: things will happen for you, in time. But I know that’s easy to say after things start happening. And the truth is, when I was in the middle of it, there was absolutely no way of knowing if or when things would start happening for me.
That’s why I’m not going to tell you to “just be patient.” Instead, I’ll reassure you that what you’re feeling right now, doubt, frustration, burnout, is completely normal.
This market can push even the most disciplined, driven journalists to their breaking point. The best way to weather the storm is by setting firm boundaries and surrounding yourself with the support you need to stay healthy.
Honestly, the best advice I got this past year came from a journalist who told me: Careers have ups, downs, and last a lifetime.
When you transition from student life into a professional career, the pace at which you move up the ranks also changes.
If you worked at your student paper, then you’re probably used to being promoted in a matter of months. In this industry, you could spend that same time working on just one story.
It’s like sobriety. At the beginning, you count every week, every month. But after your first year, you start counting by years and eventually decades. You’re still advancing, the milestones are just getting farther apart.
So don’t worry if things don’t pan out for you right away. Focus on the small, daily actions you can take to stay busy and exercising your agency. That is how you advance in your career, and most importantly, stay in recovery.
If I can leave you with one thought, it’s the African proverb: “If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.”
Over the past year, I would’ve lost hope had it not been for the support of my friends, mentors, and colleagues.
Even if you’re not in recovery, finding communities like the Journalist Recovery Network that can help you navigate the challenges you’re personally facing, can make the difference with both your career and mental health.
Tags: Self-care