seenmy wrote: I think you just have to really look at what you honestly want, if an industry being competitive is a concern or off putting but you also want to have a competitive salary you probably need to consider which is more important as the 2 pretty much go together.. and i think that applies to all industry creative or not.

If your not under pressure to have a larger income you really should weigh up what you want from life, and what sacrifice you want to make and what you expect it to return you financial or otherwise. is this change primarily driven by the desire to grow personally or economically , is it coming from you or is it being driven by seeing your peers go off and get 'proper jobs'

I would advise looking to get work experience/internships in the areas you feel would be rewarding for you, get in to those environments and gain a better practical understanding of the job/industry and the rolls within it, you can't beat first hand experience to give you context and this can then feed in to choices about training etc 3 months of interning will give you a much better picture and cost you less even if unpaid than doing a course

Doogan wrote: You can take it in 3 tranches over a two year period (with agreement from your manager).

I'm thinking a month after the baby arrives then 8 months when my wife goes back to work.

crutch wrote:
9 months is amazing! I took the standard 2 weeks when our daughter arrived and then 1month shared leave when she was 9/10 months (my gf therefore had 11months off). We took the month together and it was the best part of the whole year.

Short version - if you can take a bit more time together when the baby is bit older it can be a really fun time as a family.

Also on the initial expense - it’s worth looking second hand for things like prams - it’s mad how little some items are used and you can save a lot.

Is there much outdoor space/park etc near you? I know when I was at work and it was just my gf looking after the baby she really appreciated the garden come the summer (ours was born in November). She wouldn’t want to be going far as it’s mad how much you have to take!

Doogan wrote: Looking at the Duddingston/Mountcastle area. East Edinburgh.

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