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Re: Decisions,decisions.(longish)

Subject: Re: Decisions,decisions.(longish)
From: Marilynne Smith <marilyns -at- qualcomm -dot- com>
To: "Elna Tymes" <etymes -at- lts -dot- com>, "TECHWR-L" <techwr-l -at- lists -dot- raycomm -dot- com>
Date: Fri, 14 Apr 2000 12:39:41 -0700

At 11:59 AM 4/14/00, Elna Tymes wrote:

"Marc A. Santacroce" wrote:

> I can commit to a company now and give a good 5-10 years, whereas if
> I continue contracting, I might not be able to convince a company of
> that commitment a few years from now. On the other hand, I have to
> wonder how much longer I can stay competitive as a contractor, and
> where contracting will leave me in 5 years.

Elna
Marc, it sounds as if you're worried about how long your brain can help you
earn a living. As one of the "elders" around here (I'm older'n you, kid!) I
can vouch for the fact that age and gray hair does NOT make or break you as a
technical writer. I can also tell you that, with the right tools and
experience set, you are MORE than competitive as a contractor. I'm still
stunned by the last bidding war for my services.

As I grow older (I'll never consider myself "old") I am more interested in doing the work I love to do, not in work where I can be the grand pooh bah, not in work that is chosen because it's a good career choice. I choose the companies I work for and I try to choose work that I love to do. It's my pleasure to have that choice.

I would suggest you try this idea on yourself. How do you feel about working this way? Right now my job is exactly right, my pay is competitive, and I'm loving what I do. "Being competitive with my peers" is a concept that belongs to my earlier years. Now I know a lot. I don't need to prove anything to anyone, least of all to me.

Marilynne <whose white/blonde hair helps people find me in a crowd>

Elna
<snipped a lot>

And then there are those of us fortunate enough to be in the middle of a white-hot
market where contracting generally pays more than direct employment.

Looks pretty obvious to me.

Elna Tymes
Los Trancos Systems

~!~ ~!~ ~!~ ~!~ ~!~ ~!~ ~!~
Marilynne Smith
Sr. Technical Writer
QUALCOMM
marilyns -at- qualcomm -dot- com
(858) 651-6664
AE-203B
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~




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