I'm out and I'm never going back! by Catriona

Most of us - most writers everywhere - do something else first, or do something else alongside. What bits of your other career(s) have you found useful in the business of writing and what bits have you had to ditch?
My first professional ambition, from about 1969-74, was to be a princess and/or fairy and/or angel. I thought they were pretty much the same thing. That willingness to blend fictional and reality still comes in handy every day.
It's an HR free-for-all at the top of the average...