Cristina Riba: "I'm not an obsessive person; I don't spend every day looking at my bill."

Journalist Cristina Riba (Manresa, 1980) dreamed of working in communications from a young age. "When I grow up, I want to report on the news on TV," she said at just 6 years old. So, she graduated with a degree in Journalism from university.

The journalist combined her studies with temporary jobs. She gave tutoring classes, babysitting, and after playing basketball at a high level for many years, she became a coach. She also sold music band merchandise at the Palau Sant Jordi: "I used to work at the stalls where they set up T-shirts. I had a fantastic time. I've seen hundreds of free concerts with the excuse of being at work," explains Riba. "Hence my passion for music and live concerts," she adds.

At the same time, she also did unpaid internships in different media outlets, including TV3, where she later worked as a substitution channel, and also at RAC1, where she collaborated until she moved to New York.

Riba had to "scratch, move, look for opportunities and knock on many doors" until she achieved her goal: working for a local media outlet. "It's the experience that has marked me the most in my career. Living abroad, experiencing other dynamics, the way things work... I learned a lot," she says.

At the same time, she collaborated with state media; among others, she sent social chronicle reports to Celebrities, from La Sexta. Her peak was interviewing Meryl Streep: "There were several journalists, I called her and suddenly she stopped in front of me. I started to shake, really shake. All the American media were approaching and she only responded to me. It was brutal. It's one of the things that leaves its mark on you."

As for personal finances, it has been difficult for her to achieve economic stability. She started with temporary jobs: "I didn't know how much I would earn each month." The journalist has taken advice from her father: "He has dedicated his whole life to banking. So, when I started to earn money, he made my life much easier, he monitored my account and advised me: "careful, that's a red line" or "now you have some savings, take advantage of the fact that we have this product and maybe you'll be interested."

"When my father retired and left banking, I took over. But I'm not an obsessive person, I don't spend my days looking at the account," he adds, aware that his current situation allows it. However, he does control his spending so that it doesn't skyrocket: "I'm aware of what I have and how far I can go," he points out. So, until he saw it clearly, he didn't buy a home: "Now I have a mortgage until I'm 75," he explains.

Riba is a generous person: "What I have, I like to share, because you enjoy it more and better." In fact, he doesn't like the idea of keeping all the money he earns in the bank: "There's an important part of saving, because it's what gives you a certain peace of mind. But there's another part that for me is even more important, which is sharing," he says. He emphasizes that money is a matter of priorities: "You won't see me with a latest-generation mobile phone; I'm not attracted to that. "I find it much more fulfilling to enjoy an activity with family, friends, or someone I love," she says. "In the end, these moments are what create the beautiful memories we have in life," she explains.

After a professional career in the media and also in corporate communications, the journalist joined TV3 as a permanent editor and gained financial stability: "It gives you a peace of mind that I hadn't had until then and that unfortunately many people don't have, but that is essential when you want to have children," she explains. In this sense, the communicator denounces the precariousness that exists in her profession: "Those of us who have a decent salary shouldn't consider it a privilege because it's what should correspond to everyone, the problem is the large part of the sector that offers undignified salaries."

After 8 years presenting the weekend news, TV3 has decided to let the presenter go: "I didn't expect my departure with the arrival of the new news programs, but I always look ahead and I have a lot of life left," she assures. Now She's open to new professional challenges: "I'm very attracted to the possibility of facing a change of style and format that will allow me to grow professionally," she says. For now, you'll see her on the new 3/24 program, 3CatInfo, on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday mornings.