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Subject:Re: newbie needs advice From:"Susan W. Gallagher" <sgallagher -at- EXPERSOFT -dot- COM> Date:Tue, 3 Jun 1997 11:48:31 -0700
Rebecca R Chamberlain wrote:
>The way I see it, there are a few different directions I could take...
>1. Go back to school...
>2. Stay where I am...I'm the closest thing
>to a tech writer at my company...
>3. Find a position as a junior tech writer at a company that has an
>experienced/established documentation department where I could "learn the
>ropes."
My opinion -- as a hiring manager -- more schooling isn't going to make
you any more attractive as a prospective employee. You've got a degree.
Now you need experience. And you might as well get some where you are
before you head out for different (but not necessarily greener) pastures.
What you'll learn as a lone technical writer will take you a long way.
You'll learn to meet deadlines all by yourself. You'll learn to check
everything 100 times *before* you send it to the printer so those
expensive mistakes don't happen *again*. ;-) You'll learn that new
skills don't come easily but that they can be had with a little effort.
In short, you'll grow into a self-sufficient professional.
What you'll learn as a member of a team will also serve you well. You'll
learn that you can't always have your way. You'll learn the value of a
style sheet. You'll learn to modify your writing style so that your
writing blends in with that of the rest of the team. You'll learn the
value of brainstorming. Maybe you'll even experience that sublime state
of being that occurs when all the members of a team fit together and work
together well and produce a top-notch doc set. You'll probably learn to
work on a doc set that's larger in scope than the small company one. You'll
grow some more.
Take the hard knocks route. It'd be a much more valuable route for you
at this stage in your game.
Just my two cents.
Susan W. Gallagher Manager, Technical Publications
sgallagher -at- expersoft -dot- com Expersoft Corporation, San Diego CA http://www.expersoft.com
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