TechWhirl (TECHWR-L) is a resource for technical writing and technical communications professionals of all experience levels and in all industries to share their experiences and acquire information.
For two decades, technical communicators have turned to TechWhirl to ask and answer questions about the always-changing world of technical communications, such as tools, skills, career paths, methodologies, and emerging industries. The TechWhirl Archives and magazine, created for, by and about technical writers, offer a wealth of knowledge to everyone with an interest in any aspect of technical communications.
Subject:Re: More employment woes... From:kcronin -at- daleen -dot- com To:"TECHWR-L" <techwr-l -at- lists -dot- raycomm -dot- com> Date:Wed, 4 Dec 2002 07:14:28 -0700
Steve wrote:
> No one is going to manage your career for you.
THAT's something a lot of whirlers should print and pin up on their
cubicle walls.
Karen, you've just encountered a very typical set of obstacles that many
of us encounter. Every job has its challenges, and getting and staying "in
the loop" is one of the most common ones for tech writers.
Know that. Accept that. Assume that. And be prepared to DO something about
it.
To use a buzzword I hate, get *proactive*.
This ain't that hard a job. We get decent money, we work in
air-conditioned offices, we seldom if ever bust a sweat, and the only
danger we face is a missed deadline.
So you gotta go out and remind people to e-mail you about changes in the
products - so what? Do it. You've just said that you're in close physical
proximity to most of the departments you need to interact with (a HUGE
advantage compared to companies who divide such teams across entire
continents or even across oceans), and you've even got a great connection
for your smoke breaks. Take advantage of it. Stay on top of it.
If this stuff wasn't at least kind of challenging, we'd do it for free.
Earn your money. Reach out and involve yourself in your gig.
Keith Cronin
who has considered starting to smoke in order to get the scoop on what the
architecture team is up to
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Check out SnagIt - The Screen Capture Standard!
Download a free 30-day trial from http://www.techsmith.com/rdr/txt/twr
Find out what all the other tech writers, including Dan, already know!
Order RoboHelp X3 in December and receive $100 mail in rebate, FREE WebHelp
Merge Module and the new RoboPDF - add powerful PDF output functionality
to RoboHelp X3. Order online today at http://www.ehelp.com/techwr-l
---
You are currently subscribed to techwr-l as:
archive -at- raycomm -dot- com
To unsubscribe send a blank email to leave-techwr-l-obscured -at- lists -dot- raycomm -dot- com
Send administrative questions to ejray -at- raycomm -dot- com -dot- Visit http://www.raycomm.com/techwhirl/ for more resources and info.
