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Preparing for Your First Reporting Job

By Melissa Lee, A.S., CCR, CRI

You can “live and learn,” as they say, each of life’s lessons on your own; or you can learn to live from the successes and failures of others before you. Keeping the latter in mind, along with the preparedness training you have received from your educational career firmly imprinted in your mind (equipment maintenance/preparation, supplies, professional dress, etc.), the following would be some lessons learned from a working reporter to you, a student reporter, to add to your future check-off list until you build your own routine for success:

Above all, remember that while we strive to be perfect, we will never achieve perfection; that it is not the obstacles in our path that will define us but, rather, how we choose to overcome them. Never forget your lessons learned today so that you can apply them to all your tomorrows. Always be courteous, kind, and respectful to others, and at all times remain neutral.

Remember: Always offer to provide the same services to all parties involved; the attorney that declines a copy of your transcript today may become your biggest client tomorrow. You are building a reputation that one day will precede you, so make it one that even your grandmother could be proud of.

We, as your future court reporting community, welcome you! We look forward to seeing what you can bring to our profession and wish you all the successes life can offer. Like those before us, we have continued to build a profession that we know you can be proud of, knowing that our behavior and product represent not only us individually, our employers, and our community as a whole, but also those still to come -- you, the future graduates. We hope you continue to “pay it forward” and enjoy all that reporting has to offer for a career to come.