{"id":13571,"date":"2025-07-21T08:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-07-21T12:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/progressions.prsa.org\/?p=13571"},"modified":"2025-12-29T18:19:39","modified_gmt":"2025-12-29T23:19:39","slug":"how-to-have-a-5-to-9-during-your-first-9-to-5","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/progressions.prsa.org\/index.php\/2025\/07\/21\/how-to-have-a-5-to-9-during-your-first-9-to-5\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Have a 5-to-9 During Your First 9-to-5"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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If you had talked to me in April, you would have heard all about what now seem to be very ambitious summer plans. After accepting a position as a PR and Marketing Intern for the Ohio Expo Center & State Fairgrounds in Columbus, OH, I was excited to enjoy my 5-to-9 in a big city. Growing up and attending college in a small town has made it difficult to plan activities and find hobbies outside of the house. In Columbus, there are a million different evening events perfect for any interest, and I was planning to squeeze them all into the span of a full-time 12-week summer internship. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now, I know better and, after an initial crash and burn, realize how difficult adjusting to your first full-time job can be. No matter how much you enjoy your work and love your coworkers, it\u2019s okay to be tired at the end of the day. Being comfortable with this truth and the change in how your time is divided is key to successfully adjusting to working full-time. Drawn from my personal experiences, here are my tips for having a 5-to-9 during your first 9-to-5.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. Set aside time to adjust to your new schedule. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Diving headfirst into a lifestyle I had never experienced before set me back. I didn\u2019t realize how challenging the transition would be and how much I would need to rely on myself. I remember thinking multiple times, \u201cI haven\u2019t eaten dinner yet. What am I supposed to eat?\u201d This was because I spent so much time trying to fit in various activities and hobbies, I neglected to take care of myself. I would have been better off if I had dedicated the first week to learning the ins and outs of working full-time before adding anything else to my schedule.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2. Start small.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

After you\u2019ve adjusted to your new schedule, ease into more activities and regularly evaluate how you feel about your time management. I\u2019ve found it\u2019s easy to keep adding more to your plate once you\u2019ve started, often without a second thought about what you\u2019re already juggling. Some tactics to stay mindful of what you\u2019re taking on are: only adding one activity, event or hobby per week, setting specific dates to evaluate how you feel about your schedule and removing activities when necessary.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

3. Share your frustrations with your support system. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

You never have to face challenges alone. By talking to my friends and family about the areas where I felt I was falling short, I gained the clarity I needed to realize I wasn\u2019t missing the mark after all. Everyone reassured me the adjustment period is difficult and it\u2019s normal to feel overwhelmed at times. These conversations helped me understand I could take things at my own pace, discover what works best for me and what fulfills me the most. I also found comfort in talking to a close professional connection. Meeting with someone in the same industry gave me insight into how they handled their first full-time job. I gained tactics like setting a daily routine and having a stress relief outlet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

4. Give yourself grace.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Your support system can give you all of the reassurance and advice in the world, but you have to be able to do the same for yourself. One of the biggest challenges I faced was being comfortable taking it slow. I was so determined to have the summer I planned, I almost forgot to have the summer I enjoyed. Being able to tell myself it was okay to take things slow and adjust as needed gave me space to evaluate where I was at and what I needed. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Being able to make these changes has allowed me to enjoy my 5-to-9 just as much as I enjoy my 9-to-5. Always remember, adjusting to new environments takes time, and everyone needs to discover what works best for them. Whether you need to stick to a strict schedule, rely on family and friends or just ride the wave, make sure the life you\u2019re living makes you happy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Madeline Emerick is a senior at Ohio Northern University, majoring in public relations with a minor in social media. She has experience as the 2025-2026 Vice President of Brand Engagement for PRSSA, her Chapter\u2019s previous newsletter editor and has interned at the Ohio Expo Center & State Fairgrounds. On campus, she serves as a peer mentor and resident assistant, and in her free time, Madeline enjoys spending time with friends and family, playing video games, and reading. Connect with her on LinkedIn<\/a>!<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

If you had talked to me in April, you would have heard all about what now seem to be very ambitious summer plans. After accepting a position as a PR and Marketing Intern for the Ohio Expo Center & State Fairgrounds in Columbus, OH, I was excited to enjoy my 5-to-9 in a big city. Growing up and attending college […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":34,"featured_media":13572,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3720,2894,3776,1],"tags":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/progressions.prsa.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13571"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/progressions.prsa.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/progressions.prsa.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/progressions.prsa.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/34"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/progressions.prsa.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=13571"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/progressions.prsa.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13571\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":13575,"href":"https:\/\/progressions.prsa.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13571\/revisions\/13575"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/progressions.prsa.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/13572"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/progressions.prsa.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=13571"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/progressions.prsa.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=13571"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/progressions.prsa.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=13571"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}