#89 - I Applied to Be a Digital Reporter… and Didn't Make It

Court reporters hold one of the most important roles in the justice system.We're entrusted with the official records of the courts, and we also have to run our own businesses, which is not something most of us were prepared for.I'm Bryn Seymour, court reporter and life coach, and I invite you to join the discussion about the problems we face and the solutions we create on the unique journey of a stenographer.Welcome to the Court Reporter podcast.Lately, I've been sharing that I've come to some crossroads in deciding what do I want to do with my life, do I want to continue in this path, do I want to continue to be a court reporter?Even though it really stresses me out.So, as you know, I'm training my new btm.I've been learning so much between my coaching sessions with Joshua Edwards and training my vtm.I've realized so much about myself that was so necessary to realize in order to move forward in this path.I am, by the way, staying in this path.I did apply to all kinds of other jobs and realized that there's literally like, I'm.It's not like I don't want to say I'm stuck because I'm not stuck.I'm.I love.I love the career, but it's been a love hate relationship.So it's just one of those things where I just get emotional sometimes and I just start applying for other jobs and I'm just like, I'd rather, you know, I've seen.And I've seen conversations on community chats online where court reporters are just like, so fed up that they want to just.They're like, I'm ready to take a $17 an hour job at McDonald's or know, whatever.And I feel the same way many times.And yeah, I did apply for jobs.I even applied for a job at Magna.Oh my gosh.I even applied for a job at Magna.I don't know.I saw this job opening for Maggie Court Reporter.So I was like, oh, Maggie court Reporter, was that.So I just applied and then I got interviewed and I realized that it was a digital court reporting position and it's paying $50,000 an hour.I mean, an hour would be amazing, but 50,000 salary for.For the year.And I guess, you know, there's benefits, paid, training.I went through the interview process.I shared that I was looking for something part time to, number one, supplement my income, and number two, be something stable and steady, and number three, where I could learn more about being a great court reporter, not just writing on the machine.I've already mastered that from the first year of being in school.When I finished school, in 13 months I had mastered that.I was shocking all my professors by how clean I was writing, how quickly I was getting through it.So I have nothing really to, you know, of course we can always improve.But now what I want to master is the understanding of the profession, the understanding of the role in the justice system, the understanding of the core concepts of the justice system and the branches of the judiciary and everything I don't even see.I just feel like, at least for me, I didn't catch on to those things.I don't know if I'm slow, I don't know if I have a different type of brain or something, the way I process information.But I want to up level my mindset, up level my professionalism all around, not just writing faster or writing cleaner.I'm already a good writer.I just want to really enhance my understanding of the role that we play in the justice system and really be more confident in when and how and why to speak up, why not to, when not to, how not to, you know, all those things, things like how to carry myself, how to interact, all the etiquette, all the.Just everything about being a court reporter and upholding that duty with dignity and respect for the justice system and for the people we serve as officers of the court, the neutrality and the unbiased, everything is just so profound and I love it.So I want to really focus on those things.And court reporters have to be very, very organized and very, very, very detail oriented.And all the data entry and all the admin and all that, where you really have to have focus, you really have to pay attention.And when you're doing both writing on the record and managing all your deadlines and all your tasks and all your personal households and all your everything in life, it's just like almost like two full time jobs and you don't have time for yourself and for your family and for your things that are meaningful to you.So I just realized like how important it is for me, at least for me to have a vtm, to have, in order to have life balance, I have to have a vtm.I cannot live without a VTM the way that I'm operating without one, or that I was operating without one.It is night and day.As soon as I started training my new vtm, as soon as I started training her, which by the way, she is in her last week of school right now, so we both decided that we would just wait until she's done and I would just take the blow, take the blow because I started working more, anticipating that I would have her help and I started taking on more jobs.And then it's now the, the hole that I've dug is getting deeper because she actually is finishing her finals and everything.So we just decided like, okay, I didn't, I didn't realize, like it is literally the last week of school.I didn't think that through.So I'm just, we were, we were just like, okay, let's just wait until you're done.So in the meantime, I have another friend who just had a baby eight months ago.So she has an eight month old baby and she is basically a full time mom.But, but she wants some extra income on the side.So I'm training her too.So I'm basically training two VTMs.And I just, like I said, I've realized how important it is for me to have a VTM because it gives me hope, that it gives me that extra motivation and that extra strength to take the extra step of organizing all my files, moving them into the proper folders, getting my workspace organized, deleting things that are not necessary for the workspace to be clean and clear and clutter free for my vtm because I'm preparing the way for them to be able to navigate inside this workspace.And if my workspace is cluttered, then they're not going to be able to do their job.They're going to be texting and calling me like, where's this file?What's that file?What's going on in here where I can't find this?I don't want that.So the fact that I have the support and then I have the help that gives me that hope and that strength and that power that I need to take the extra step rather than at the end of a depot just collapsing and wanting to disappear for the rest of the night.Instead of that, I just have the strength and the excitement.It's not even like, it doesn't even feel like a drag.It doesn't feel burdensome, it feels exciting.I'm like excited to upload all my exhibits.I'm excited to back up my files.I'm excited to like get it out of sight and out of mind because I know that as soon as I get everything uploaded, it's production is underway and I do not have to touch it, I don't have to do anything.I don't have to worry about it.Until now, of course.Right now we're in the training phase.So that's not really true right now, but still, it.It just.And I love it.I'm very, very thankful for having of etm.If anyone wants to learn more about that, please feel free to reach out to brynourtreporterpodcast.com I'd be happy to set up a call and just talk about it with you.Or actually, we can talk.I will talk to anyone.I have a calendar available, especially for court reporters.I have like five slots on my calendar every month for just reserved for court reporters that want to talk to me, but I want to record it.Because, like I always say, I don't know, I feel like I'm being redundant.But like, I know probably a lot of listeners are new and you may have never heard me say this, but I always felt like every conversation I have with another court reporter is golden, especially if that court reporter is more experienced than I am.I feel like I learned so much through every conversation that I have, and therefore I always felt like, huh, why are these.Why don't we just record these conversations?I feel like if I had just had this conversation earlier, I would have learned so much and had eliminated so much of the unnecessary suffering that I went through if I had just had this conversation earlier or listened to it.And I always looked for a podcast to help me become a better court reporter, to learn more about the field, to learn more about running a business and managing files and workspaces and optimizing flows and everything.So I always looked for something but never found it.So that is why I say, if you want to talk to me, I'm open, I'm here, I'm available.But I'm going to press record because you're going to be featured on the podcast.You are going to become the guest in the spotlight.And even if you have just.Even if you just want to ask some questions, then go ahead.I'll.You'll still be the featured guest.I mean, I'm the featured guest on my own podcast all the time.And what am I doing?Asking questions about why things are the way.Like, trying to find solutions, talking about how bad I am at things, talking about how much I need to.How much help I need, how much support I need.Like, I'm not.I'm not considering myself to be, like, the expert.No, I'm not.I have just mastered one little thing, and that is delegation through delegation to a vtm.That is the one thing that I have mastered.Why?Because I am not that good at being a vtm.I am good at being a court reporter and that's what I want to be.And that's the lane I want to stay in.Not the VTM lane, not the project management lane.That is basically what a VTM is.A project manager for a court reporter who has the software, who has the.The.Who knows how to do the scoping, who knows how to do the file management, who knows how to get the jobs done.You know, that type of person to run the show of the deadlines and the transcripts.So with that in mind, I also wanted to share the sessions with Joshua.Oh my gosh.So helpful.Auto indexing is what we worked on today.I cannot believe in school they told us we were going to forget this if we didn't constantly do it.And I was like, we won't forget.But here I am, like 10 years later relearning it again.Because what have I been doing for the past few years?I've been doing it manually.That is actually one of the main sources of the burnout that I've been feeling and the overwhelm I've been feeling and all the hesitation and the resistance to this career is because I'm doing everything the hard way.I've been taking the long cuts instead of shortcuts.I've been doing, you know, in case cat, how they say, like, never touch your mouse, like, learn all the keyboard shortcuts because even though it doesn't feel like it, but you will save so much time over time as time passes by in the long run.I have been doing the opposite, like the equivalent of using the mouse for so many things in like.I know it's.I'm kind of using that as a metaphor because I do actually use the keyboard shortcuts because that really stuck with me in school.I'm all about saving time.I love saving time for what's more important than busy work and admin tasks.I love, love, love saving time.I'm very big on productivity and efficiency, streamlining and optimizing workflows.So that really stuck with me.And I always try to keep up with those keyboard shortcuts, but in terms of other things like the indexing and I don't know, I just, I guess because I've worked for so many different clients and different agencies and have gotten so many different includes from different people, my files became so cluttered, so overwhelming to look at and so confusing, and I just confused myself and just got to the point where I was just like, oh my gosh, just like put whatever just Put it, just throw it in and just throw it together.And I kind of got careless about it and it just caused me to not want to do it anymore.It just became too much.But as I'm cleaning things up, it's really making a huge difference.So I can say it right now, like just put the time into it and don't feel bad.Don't feel like you're wasting someone's time.That's what.Part of the reason that I held back from asking for help is because I didn't want to waste someone's time.I felt like I should pay for it.And that's why I offered $10,000 to have someone really take me through the process of going from average to exceptional court reporter and really push me.Like really, you know, hold me accountable, bring me to the finish line of becoming a real time reporter.I mean, I think 10,000 is more than worth it.It's gonna be nothing for me once I'm a real time reporter taking real time jobs.And the only, the crazy thing is that I should have been doing it real time a long time ago.But the only reason I'm not is because of the technology and the fears associated with that.On another note, I have to share something about the merger between Star and aaert.Now I've never been like a die hard dedicated member of any association in our industry.Not one.I never felt super connected or compelled to any of them.And I've definitely never been a member of the AAERT or actually I have been a member of Star for I think a year and attended one of their conventions.I wasn't like a super compelled to continue with that membership.So I wasn't a member of those anymore for a while.But when I saw the announcement about the merge between Star and aiert, I didn't really know like what to think.But something inside of me felt like a sense of happiness, a sense of hope, like this is good.I feel like this is what we should see more of.There shouldn't be so many different associations.Like why not just, why not just come together?Why not unite?I love unity.And that's a huge theme of my life is like trying to be united.Because as they say, united we stand, divided we fall.It's just so powerful to be united with a group and to be a part of something bigger than yourself and to be a part of a movement, to be a part of a community that supports you.And if there are so many different little ones, it's not really, it doesn't feel that supportive.But this merger, just something about it is kind of exciting.I don't know what it is, but I feel excited by it.And I have no personal connection to anyone inside of either of these organizations.I don't know anyone personally.I have no connections in there.I don't.I've never even really spoken to any of them except when I attended the Star convention and was a member of Star.But I don't even remember who.Like I have no idea who I spoke to.I don't remember.So I am just saying like it's not.There's no.I don't really know where the feeling is coming from.But I just like the fact that they are merging together.I like the fact that they are trying to include everyone and not discriminating against anyone because of the method or because of the tool.It is really a beautiful thing, I think.So I have been writing some songs and here is.I'm just gonna.I have been thinking about like which song do I want to share first?So in light of the fact that the merger.This merger is happening and I'm not gonna be at the convention, as of right now, I don't have plans to be there.I wanted to go.I asked if I could come as like with a media pass to cover the conference, but I think it was too last minute.And I, as of right now, unless something changes, I do not have tickets to go.But I will be going to the one in Washington.The NCRA convention.Yes, I'll be there.Yeah.So I'm not going to be at the convention and you know, when Capture is revealed or when Capture is celebrating the.The merge of AART and Star.But I did write a song about it because I've been writing songs.So I guess the first song I'm gonna release is that one because I really.I just really like it and I just.It hurts me and pains me to see all the fights and all this nudiness, like all this stuff going on in the industry and the fights.And it just really drains me when I read the threads about the arguments and people accusing others for things that we don't.Well, at least I'm not saying I fully understand it.Yes, there's more that I can learn.I'm not an expert, but something about this merge is.Feels powerful.Something feels exciting, something feels.It feels like inviting and collaborative and just united.So I just wanted to kind of have some hope for the future.Have some hope for the future of the profession.We actually, I believe 100 that we can make it amazing together, like digital court reporters.I don't think we should be threatened by them because I feel like if we help each other and help them.The thing is that it's not about the tool.It's not about the instrument that we're using to create the record.It's about the human oversight.It's about the human expertise and the judgment that we apply to what we're doing and creating the record.The record.So no matter what tool we're using, as long as we are focused and paying attention to every word and really putting our hearts into it, that's what matters.So why, why should a digital reporter not be able to do that?Why should a voice reporter not be able to do that?And why should a steno reporter not be able.Like, what's the difference?It doesn't matter what tool we're using.I understand that stenographers, myself included, are maybe a little bit like, maybe jealous, maybe bitter, maybe like fear.Because all the sacrifice and all the hard work that went into learning how to write on the machine feels like now it's going to waste.But it's not going to waste.It's what made us who we are.And the digital and the voice writing era will.Ultimately, they will have a way to become seasoned.Just like we had to spend, however long we had to spend writing every word on the machine and learning the theory and learning the tech of the machine.We had to go through that for some reason.But they probably have their own path and their own thing to go through, which is why I was actually also open to taking that job at Magna.And by the way, I was rejected.That's so funny.I was rejected.I was rejected for that job and I was willing to actually do it because I would.I'm just so curious, like, what is the process of digital reporting?And what I learned through that interview is that they do not have the people just press buttons and then send it overseas or something.They don't do that.Actually, they require.Like I asked, am I.Would I be allowed to use a scopist?They said, no, you yourself are required to manage the entire transcript from beginning to the end.They pay for the training.

They.

They teach you how to do it, and you are responsible for the record from the beginning to the end.Yes, the salary is much lower.But I mean, let's just be thankful that we who are stenographers, those who do have the drive and the determination, those who are willing to go through that extra step of becoming a Stenographer and getting that training.Let's just be grateful that we have higher rates.I mean, we.We do have higher rates, and digitals have lower rates, and they're okay with that because, I mean, you know, you get into it, you get out of it what you put into it, right?So I don't think anything is unfair here.And what really matters is that the record is preserved and the integrity of the record is preserved.So if we all unite together and help each other to understand the importance of our role and how to act, how to conduct ourselves, how to be professional and really dig into the.The beauty of the role of the neutrality and the unbiased role in the justice system, it's really beautiful.I love it.And again, it doesn't matter what the tool is.So that's why I decided to choose this song for the opening, the grand opening of my album.I've been doing this, writing songs for a while, and I think I have like four or five really good ones that I want to release.I mean, I have so many songs that are not amazing, that are just like kind of like rough drafts and things thrown together, but I have a few that are really coming along and that are really good.I just love this one.I love it because it's about unity.It's about something bigger, it's about something greater.I don't really know all the details.Correct me if I'm wrong.Feel free to reach out to me, even if it's a hate.Even if you want to send me hate mail, go ahead.I'm happy to hear your point of view.But.But just.Just know that I have seen a lot of.I have.I feel like I've seen and heard every argument.So no matter what your argument is, to me, I think that I pretty much have an opinion.But of course, I can always learn more if there's something that I'm not seeing.But the fact that, like, MAGNA is teaching the digital court reporters to oversee the entire process and to do their own scoping and to do their own transcript management, like that means.I truly think that means they could be considered court reporters, maybe not stenographers.I mean, that sets us apart because we are writing on a steno machine.We're stenographers, and they are digital.I know some of you are going to be mad that I'm saying reporters, but I just feel like that role, reporting the.The testimony accurately is done by the human, is done by the judgment, by the understanding, and that can be done by a person.Not by a machine or a tool or.No, it's by a person.So that is why we are the guardians of the record.

Foundation laid mic check pass where the witness make it fast.

Real time feed is looking clean.

Scope is fixing line fixing.Objection.Asked an answer.That's not what he said, judge.Now counsel is testifying.Objection.I don't understand the question.My client is not answering the question.Counsel, this is a deposition.You know the rules.Argumentative.Objection sustained.I call for the production of tax return term 2030.Oh, and every robot tax here is he Speaker Ivies and sidebar whispers exhibit stickers Real time glitches Let the record reflect we survived another tech check.Audio synced, exhibits marked can you read that back for counsel?Coffee running through our vessels O We preserve the testimony Every pause in every story from objections to appeals we protect what truth reveals Real time Rush setting pace Scope is polishing the page Digital syncing every frame Every craft has earned its place Move to strike the old divide Let the record reunite different methods, same pursuit Preserving every piece of truth Preserving every piece of truth.

Attorney talking.

Way too fast Witness drifting off at last who was he talking to?Trailing off words away from the mic Paper shuffling somebody sneeze Somebody bump the us Audio routed channel three video froze repeatedly Cancel one at a time, please Live captions hitting airtime Finger stacks in real time Every role behind the scenes Keeping chaos running clean foundation strong pressure high still we never compromise the smallest line can be the difference in liability we preserve the testimony Every word becomes comes history Every sidebar, every claim, every silence holds a name from the real time beats of trial Every role walks every mile Voice or steno text or sound Everybody holds us down Move to strike the old divide Let the record reunite.

Case closed off the record.

Oh, I can't wait to share the next song with you.Every.I think in every episode or every week, I'll release a new song.So stay tuned for the next one.It's gonna be about reporter flow and vtms.I used Suno.S U N as in Nancy, O as in octopus.I don't know why I said that.I mean, O is not one of those letters that you can get mixed up with something else.But suno?Yeah, Suno is an app where you can put in the lyrics and the style that you want and, like, kind of work with it to write a song.So if you're creative, and I've always been a songwriter, I actually recorded another episode about, like, explaining about this.So next episode, I'll probably.Or no.Next episode is part two of the Whitney and Cameron episode with the merger with Veritext, that is the next episode.So at some point, I'll probably release a little bonus episode.So, anyway, I am really excited.I'm sorry, I keep saying that I have got to stop.And right now it's actually 4:43am I haven't gone to bed yet.5:00Am has become my new bedtime.All right, Good night.

Bye.

6:00Am Coffee's cold inbox blowing up again Calendar's a guessing game where do I even begin?Exhibits missing, emails buried, deadlines closing in Freelancer life look glamorous but this ain't what I pictured then Running jobs, chasing.

Checks, spreadsheets everywhere different threads, different apps.

Nothing's really clear Did I send that?Did I bill that?Wait, who's covering Friday?Burnout creeping in real quiet like it's here to stay I was working in my business never working on it Every win felt temporary Every system felt chaotic.

Then I found my flow, yeah, report a flow Now I run the game I don't chase it no more from scattered to CEO Got my BTM telling me where to go Deadlines clear, money track systems on repeat Confidence built in every single heart.