My co-workers, especially the younger ones, have surely heard me tell them, likely multiple times, that they are doing great in life and at work and are much more poised for success than I was in my early to mid-20s, the age of a lot of our newer hires these days. I am so proud of each of them—more than they know.

Why do I say that? When I was their age, I was immature, only occasionally employed and didn’t even know what I wanted to do with myself. I was a hot mess.

Sure, I had just graduated from a good college—on time, with OK-ish grades—but I just wasn’t prepared for the real world. And I wasn’t sure if journalism, my major, was my path, either.

However, I knew I needed to do something. I was covering high school girls soccer and basketball (poorly) as a freelance…