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What’s my value as a technical communicator?

I felt like a superhero and could conquer the world--what happened?
I felt like a superhero and could conquer the world–what happened?

I apologize for being absent for so long, and only sharing curated content for the last few months. There have been a lot of changes, and there’s still some transitioning going on, so keeping up with a blog hasn’t been that easy to do.

Even so, it’s a time when I’ve recently been doing a lot of soul searching with regards to my career. It’s take some unexpected turns in the last few months since my long-term contract ended in July. Some of it good, some of it not as good, but all have been learning experiences not only in learning something new, but learning something about myself.

I’ve been reflecting on several jobs I’ve had over the years, and looking at patterns of where things went right, and where things went wrong. Not being so young anymore, I have a certain perspective now that I wouldn’t have had even just a few years ago. I guess with age does come wisdom. I’ve also started to figure out what I want–and don’t want–from my career.

I’ll give you an example of a common pattern that’s happened in my career. I would take a job or an assignment because I needed the money and/or had a certain set of expectations that the experience would help my career. When none of the expectations of that position would have been met, deep frustration would set in, which would yield to depression and feeling stuck. I would be asked to bring certain skills, and was hired due to those skills, but then those skills wouldn’t be used. I would end up trapped in doing something that I could do well, or at least passably, but not something I wanted to do. This has happened several times, and I question why I get stuck in that kind of situation so frequently.

I thought of a job analogy that might explain this differently. Imagine that you had gone to culinary school to become a trained chef . So, as a chef, you are hired at a restaurant to work in the kitchen in a chef role for your cooking skills, and you’re fine with doing salad duty to work your way up, as long as cooking is involved, because that’s your passion and training. But for some reason, the owner has you left out of the kitchen to wait on tables for a while because it will help you understand your patrons. You go along with it for a little while, with the hope that you’ll get to that salad chopping soon. Soon, it becomes apparent that the owner has you, a chef, waiting on tables permanently. It’s not that you don’t have the ability to wait tables, but it’s not what you were hired to do, and it’s not strength. Subsequently, you get upset because the training and expertise is being wasted, and you feel like you were misled, because the job completely changed from the job description given at the time of the application and interview.

Like I said, I’ve had this happen to me several times over the years, and right now, I often feel like I’ve fallen into that “chef” role described above. The difference is that I’m a technical communicator, and what I “cook” is different. I know there are certain things that I do very well. I know I’m a capable person, but I also recognize my weaknesses.  I also know what I don’t want to do. Becoming a technical communicator in my late forties has been the making of a second career. I know I’m still working my way up and gaining experience, but I have prior experience, too. At my age, I’m getting to a point that I’m financially secure enough that I don’t have to keep a job for financial security as much as when I was young, but I do need to like what I’m doing and have a steady, fair-paying income.

This thought process lead me to thinking about what makes an ideal job–whether you are a technical communicator, or have any kind of job, for that matter. I’ve concluded that what makes or breaks your contentment with a job is having the feeling of being valued. The positions where I learned and grew the most, and where I was generally happiest were at jobs where I felt like I was valued for my skills, my insights, and my opinions.  Most often, all I wanted was for my voice to be heard and considered, not heard and pushed aside. I can accept if there’s a valid reason why my idea is not a good one, but “that doesn’t work,” or “that’s not how we do it,” or “everyone’s used to that, so why change it?” doesn’t sit with me too well most of the time. They seem like childish responses. I like to show that I can do the work, and do it well or beyond expectations. I try to push limits where I can, because it helps everyone grow and progress. There was a point in my career when I got accustomed to being dismissed for proposing any ideas or solutions, and so I accepted that my ideas or opinions weren’t valued at all. I lost my “voice” for a very long time. But in recent years, I was invited to use my voice, and as a result, I roared! I grew as a person, because I felt valued because I could contribute some good ideas, even if there were ideas that weren’t used.

But lately, I’ve been unbalanced in what I’ve been working on, and I’ve let that get to me profoundly.  I question whether I’m on the right track to be doing something that uses my skills the right way and makes me feel valued. My confidence has been compromised, and it’s a truly awful feeling that I don’t want taking over my life.

At some point, I'll feel like I'm flying high again.
At some point, I’ll feel like I’m flying high again.

As I continue this soul searching process, it brings me to the question of what makes me a valuable technical communicator? What is it that I do so well that some people appreciate it, and others not as much? What do I need to do to bring out the best worker in me? What do I need to do to grow and help myself create new opportunities while providing the valuable know-how I already possess?

I am curious as to what other technical communicators think, based on their experiences. I know of several technical communicators who are also in flux with their careers as well–between jobs or having taken new jobs recently. The technical communications field is not an easy one, as it is rife with both short and long-term contracts, people who don’t understand what the value of tech comm as a whole is, and situations where people don’t understand how to best utilize us.  What are your experiences? Have you gone through the same roller coaster rides that I’ve been career-wise? What has made your career as a technical communicator worth the past hardships? What do you think is the value of a technical communicator?

Include your comments below! I would really like to hear and share experiences with others.

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What? You believed that “Sayonara” post?

keep-calm-youve-been-prankedHello, friends! 🙂

If you didn’t figure it out by now, I’m not going anywhere. My post, “Sayonara, TechCommGeekMom,” was an April Fool’s Day prank. I was put up to the task by none other than Al Martine and Connie Giordano, editors of TechWhirl. They approached me with the idea to add an article to their annual April Fool’s Day edition of TechWhirl. It was actually Al’s idea for me to write a send-off for my blog, and hopefully, I succeeded in my first attempt at writing satire. The scary thing is, much of that article wasn’t that far-fetched! I wouldn’t mind having a PhD in either History or Tech Comm, working at a yarn store (I do know how to knit, and I actually do understand the differences between types of wool), or pursuing genealogy as a profession. The reality is that none of that is happening anytime soon, and I’m not giving up tech comm or this blog. (Although, it seems that my “demise” garnered many hits on my blog. I’m hoping that it’s because you’d all miss me!)

If anything, I’m more dedicated than ever to keep this little blog going.  It’s been quite the journey already, and with the all-time hits approaching the 20,000 mark, and over 600 curated and original posts here, I don’t want to lose momentum. In my eyes, I’m still growing this blog, and it’s still a baby.  Would I like to attain the kind of readership that someone like, say, Tom Johnson, has? Absolutely. Tom has a head start on me, having been a tech writer for a longer time, and also having kept a tech comm blog for a longer time. And that’s okay. Tom is totally cool, so if I can be like him in eight to ten years of growing my blog, I’m good with that. We’re not in competition anyway, as we don’t necessarily address the same things.  He’s also earned the top tech comm blogger title because he provides insightful and helpful information. Over time, I hope that I am providing that same kind of service. (Hey, I was just thrilled to death when he recognized me at the Intelligent Content Conference last month!)

So, no worries! I’m still here. I’m going to be continuing to write and curate information about blogging, technical writing, e-learning, m-learning, and any other cool tech-geek stuff that I can find that I feel is worth sharing. I’m always open to ideas on how to grow my blog, including having guest bloggers, discussions, polls–anything–to keep ideas fresh and discussions flowing. If you’d like to see a topic covered, let me know!

TechCommGeekMom continues to be built on the concept of creating a tech comm and e-learning community, where newbies like myself could converse with more experienced technical communicators in a relaxed and casual atmosphere, sort of like friends hanging out at the kitchen table at Mom’s house. In this case, it’s TechCommGeekMom’s table, so pull up a chair. I’m sure I’ve got some snacks around here somewhere.

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Join me at the STC-PMC 2014 Mid-Atlantic Conference!

STC-PMC logo

One of the things I like about the STC having a chapter set-up is that even if the closest chapter isn’t next door, it’s usually still close enough to find people from your region with whom you can connect. For me, I found my “tribe” with the STC – Philadelphia Metro Chapter, or “STC-PMC” as we call it.

Every year, the STC-PMC hosts a Mid-Atlantic Technical Conference that people from around mid-Atlantic region–and beyond–come to learn and present information going on in the world of tech comm. My first exposure to tech comm conferences–and presenting–was at last year’s STC-PMC conference, and it was just a positive experience. I met many people whom I had only known through social media, and met new people as well. Philadelphia is known as the “City of Brotherly Love”, and it’s evident with this STC chapter. I immediately felt welcomed both as a member and as a new presenter as well.

The conference itself opened my eyes to new possibilities and new ideas as well. I also felt that it validated many of my own experiences as well–that I was coming up with similar ideas and solutions as others in the field. I also liked that unlike the STC Summit or some of the other conferences I’ve been to, this one is a little smaller and more intimate, allowing everyone the opportunity to get to know the speakers and the other attendees on a more one-to-one level.

This year’s STC-PMC conference is on Saturday, March 22nd just outside of Philadelphia in Willow Grove, PA. This all-day event is going to be jam-packed full of good information that’s timely and will be helpful in your tech comm evolution. I’m presenting this year, and my presentation is called, “Blogging Out Loud: The Basics of Blogging.” It seems I know a little something about blogging and am willing to share. 🙂

But I’m not the only draw–Neil Perlin, STC President Nicky Bleiel, Ellen Buttolph, Roger Renteria, Ben and Marilyn Woelk, Donn DeBoard, Todd DeLuca, Traci Browne, David Dylan Thomas, Bernard Aschwanden and Christopher Ward will all be presenting as well. There’s lunch, prizes, and lightning talks, too! All at a very affordable price!

Afterwards, there will be a free networking event at the nearby Iron Abbey restaurant sponsored by WebWorks and Publishing Smarter. (You don’t need to go to the conference to attend the networking event, but you’ll get more bang for your buck if you do both!)

So, it’s a fantastic event that the STC-PMC is setting up, and gee–it’s on a Saturday! You don’t have to worry about missing work to take advantage of this great networking and learning opportunity.

If you’re relatively nearby and want to participate, there’s still time and still some spots left! Register today by going to http://www.stcpmc.org/conference.

You won’t regret it! (And if you do come, make sure to seek me out and say hello!)