Let me preface this post by saying that I'm guilty of the very practice that I'm questioning. But I want to get some thoughts on it from other journalism professionals. This is actually something that a lot of us, I'm sure, struggle with, and I'm sure other young journalists who may just be breaking into the business from college (or wherever) may be struggling with it as well.

So you've got a job. You've got benefits. You've got a regular paycheck. And you've got a way to occupy your time from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. (or insert your own regular work hours here). Conventional theory is that you should have more than enough work, and financial compensation as a result thereof, to satiate your appetite for writing and/or editing.

But let's look at reality here. As a former journalism professor once told me (and I've heard other notable journalists like Charlayne Hunter-Gault and Cynthia Tucker issue similar approximations), "If you're getting into journalism for the money, then get out of journalism." So when the time comes, freelancing can present itself as a very viable option to add clips to your portfolio, add experience to the ol' resume and, perhaps most importantly, add some cash to your wallet.

But here comes the "quandary" part. How do you coordinate a full-time editorial day job with a freelance job? Is there enough time in the day to do both? If so, how do you balance the time?

Note: Before you're quick to say that you should set aside a little time during the day to work on freelance assignments (including conducting interviews, editing, writing, etc.) remember that when you accepted your full-time job, you pledged to give it your undivided attention and effort. So, again, how do you balance freelance work with your full-time job? Ethically, is it wrong? Or do you think it's OK to "rob Peter to pay Paul?" Or is there a way to do things the "right" way? Is there such a thing?

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