What’s the best experience for a writer?

Sometimes I wonder if writing is the best occupation for a writer.  What I mean is, if I’m going to create, is it best for me to be employed as a writer?  Or should I try to gain life experience in another line of work, all the while writing in my downtime?  That’s the route a lot of great writers have taken.  But that route might be a problem for me.  If I knew I could depend on myself to put plenty of effort into writing in my downtime, it could work for me.  But I’d have to make a concerted effort, which I haven’t done before.

I do most of my writing at work right now.  Even though my job forces me to write in someone else’s voice many times, or to use styles of writing that I’m not terribly fond of, it still forces me to write and edit.  It forces me to hone my skills and become more well-rounded as a writer.

But on the other hand, even though I get a lot of training in writing when I’m at work, I can’t really develop my own voice unless I write on my own time.  That was less the case when I was working at a newspaper, but still true to an extent.  The guidelines for corporate writing (my job now) are much more rigid than those for newspaper writing; but news writing still requires adherence to certain strictures.

I guess all this leads me to believe that, no matter what I’m doing for a living, it really behooves me to write in my downtime.  Working as a writer and editor has its benefits, as I become better versed in the English language. (Reading a lot helps with that too.)  And working in other jobs helps me by offering broader life experiences.  But I can gain life experience and writing experience—or development of my own voice—in my off-time.  So maybe, no matter how I’m making money, the most important thing is just avoiding laziness outside of 9 to 5.