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Happy 1st Birthday, TechCommGeekMom.com!

Posted on March 9, 2013 by TechCommGeekMom

One year ago today, I took steps that would change my life. I started this blog. Its purpose was two-fold. First, I was encouraged by my friend, fellow grad student, and technical communicator, Shay Shaked, to write a tech comm blog. He insisted that I was a good writer and that I had some interesting insights to technology, tech comm, and m-learning, and that I should just start writing some of this stuff down. I thought he was a little crazy, but I had done blogging before, so it seemed like a natural thing to do. At the same time, I was taking a fantastic social media class for my last semester in NJIT’s MSPTC program with Dr. Andrew Klobucar, and one of our assignments was to start a blog that centered on creating community for a particular topic. Since I was already about to start writing a blog upon Shay’s encouragement about tech comm issues, Dr. K had no problem with me continuing on my own with this, as long as what my end product produced, along with building up my social network through Twitter and Facebook (and any other outlets) also showed that I was immersing myself into my community and participating in that community. So, a little tech comm blog, with the goal of just having a niche audience in tech comm, e-learning, and m-learning was born. I never expected many people to notice my blog, or at most, it would be very, very small.

Boy, was I wrong! TechCommGeekMom.com has changed my life! It has opened many doors that I would have never expected, and has become a bigger blog than I ever expected. Sure, it’s still a fairly small blog with a small niche following, but even so, it exploded from my perspective.

As of this writing, since the first words were published on this blog a year ago, TechCommGeekMom has received 8800 hits, with my best day having hit 112 hits. It has been read in 107 countries. 107! I have about 634 registered followers of the blog as well. All this was accomplished through 306 posts (this is number 307) and 996 tags of both original and curated content. I pulled in content that I thought was interesting, and even had the aforementioned Shay do a guest post, but otherwise I just wrote about what I was going on in my mind. Little did I know that others had similar thoughts, or enjoyed my writing. I made sure to promote my little blog through my TechCommGeekMom Twitter account, which I had started shortly before the blog, and on my Facebook and LinkedIn accounts as well. Getting exposure is all about marketing yourself, especially if you’re out of work, and looking to graduate soon and find a tech comm job, as I was at the time.

My efforts definitely started working. The number of Twitter followers I had went from a mere 20 followers to 100 within a few weeks. Now, I have about 600 followers. Again, as compared to the major players in tech comm, that’s not a lot, but to have gone from 20 to 600 in about a year–that’s a pretty big jump! I started seeing people retweeting the links I was posting to my blog posts, and that was exciting! I think one of the biggest thrills for me was when I saw my tweet promoting my blog post about the m-learning Whitepaper that I wrote re-tweeted by one of the leading m-leading experts out there, and he was even one of my references in the paper–WHOA! I was even thrilled that another one of my references in the Whitepaper was actually my editor, too. I mean, who gets that kind of help? I also have enjoyed talking one-on-one with many of these experts through social media, and glad that so many have become not only mentors, but friends as well.

My big “break” was, as regular readers know, due to Adobe. I had written the post about wanting to know more about tech comm software, and of all the software companies that I mentioned, Parth Mukherjee of Adobe’s TCS marketing group actually responded. I really never expected ANYONE to respond to it. It was just a frustrated, ranting post, and yet here was someone from a major software company contacting me. So thanks to Parth, to whom I’ll forever be grateful, he helped me gain greater exposure, offering me a chance to do a Thought Leadership webinar when I was still a graduate student (I delivered it a month after graduation–see the link on the right sidebar), and between him and his team, have provided me with many great writing opportunities. This relationship has grown, which is evident from the advertisement that you see in the top right corner from them. (Do click it!) Through Adobe, I had the chance to go to their pre-conference event at Lavacon this past October, and meet other movers and shakers in the tech comm industry who truly are the ones who are moving this profession forward. It’s very cool to say that I was yarn shopping with about half the presenters at the Adobe’s pre-Lavacon event, and I continue to keep in contact–or at least keep up–with most of the people I met there even now.

This also helped open doors through the STC. I started making connections locally and through those I had met both through Twitter, my blog, and meeting at the Adobe event. Long story, short, this created some notice within STC that my local chapter asked me to do some articles for their newsletter. Also, after attending a webinar by the STC, the moderator recognized my moniker, and asked if I would be interested in writing for them! You’ve been seeing the result of that collaboration most recently with my “First-Timer’s Summit” posts, which will be continuing for a little while.

I also received fantastic mentions by TechWhirl.com and Tech-Tav.com, who have also been great supporters, as well as the professors and fellow MSPTC’ers, for continuing to be a source of support. Couldn’t do it without y’all too.

I just completed my first professional presentation yesterday at the STC Mid-Atlantic Technical Conference in Philadelphia yesterday. I was nervous, but happy that my talk was well-received, and I got a chance to meet some of the people whom I had gotten to know on Twitter and other social media venues in person. I think the biggest thrill–or perhaps it was shock–that I got yesterday was that two people came up to me and asked, “Aren’t you TechCommGeekMom?” They weren’t people whom I had met before online, either. One of the attendees to my session even told me she attended because a co-worker saw that I was presenting, and told her that she should go see “TechCommGeekMom”. For me, that totally blew my mind. I’m still (happily) freaking out over it.

So, from what started out essentially as a student project for grad school has grown into something much, much bigger. I’m working full-time now, so it’s not as easy to keep up the pace of writing as regularly as I used to during the past year, but this is my special project, and I’m not about to stop. I have grown in so many ways since starting this blog, and when I look back on my life a year ago, so much has changed, and changed for the better. I finally did get a job, and part of it was that they liked not only what I had to say in my interview and liked my e-portfolio, but they liked what I had to say in my blog. There was an interview that I got (although I didn’t get the job) in which the hiring manager actually included me for the interviews because he said he was intrigued by what I had to say about mobile learning in my blog.

It appears that when one feels insignificant in the world, just another number in a huge statistic, she can still have a voice, and I found mine in the past year. I’m just incredibly grateful, more than words can actually describe, that people who have read this blog appreciate my voice.

I’m excited to see where the next year is going. TechCommGeekMom is not going away. I feel like I’m just getting started! I love meeting all the wonderful people that I have in the tech comm and e-learning/m-learning fields. I’m not going to stop writing about either topic, and I will continue to try to write and curate articles that I think are important or have any kind of impact on others, or just feel that it needs some sort of commentary. Ironically, second article that I wrote for this blog, written immediately after the first one, was a small rant about how iWork documents for iPad wouldn’t be saved in the iCloud. Ha, how things have changed. The presentation that I did yesterday was done on my iPad
(me, still promoting mobile!), and it has a backup in the iCloud. Oh yeah.

If you would like to help me celebrate, be sure to refer my blog to others, and feel free to look at past posts over the past year, and let me know if you’d like to see me write or comment on anything in particular! I am always open to suggestions, and it helps me bring together the TechCommGeekMom community that I hope I’ve created. Helping this blog grow would be the best present ever.

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“A Fear Stalks Our Profession…”

Posted on March 5, 2013 by TechCommGeekMom

The STC posted this on Facebook today (I was so busy today, that I don’t know if they posted it elsewhere), and I was struck by how focused it is in the message. Credit goes to Rick Lippincott who gave this presentation, and to the STC for posting it!

This Lightning Talk from the 2012 STC Summit in Chicago expresses exactly why I get so excited about technical communications. It’s an fantastic time to be a technical communicator! Enjoy!

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How important is a credential in tech comm?

Posted on February 1, 2013February 1, 2013 by TechCommGeekMom

I was recently involved in an online discussion on Facebook with some friends about the benefit of having a Masters degree in this day and age. A friend of mind had posted this article which argued that having a Masters wasn’t worth the expense or time:

My Master’s wasn’t worth it

A big problem I had with the article is that it seemed like people weren’t focused enough, in some respects, when it came to what they were doing with their degree. For example, I agree that MBAs are a dime a dozen, and people often get them thinking it’s going to provide some sort of “magic bullet” in their career. I’ve never taken a business course, and I’ve done just fine in business without one. I’m sure there are certain jobs and specialities that it’s warranted, but some get it just to say that they earned it. MBAs seem to be losing their value. Another chap had the problem that he’d have to do his internship all over again due to an illness during his first one. Without that internship completed, he couldn’t graduate and get his license to become a practicing psychologist. He tried to get a job without the degree, but he couldn’t, but he also didn’t bother to try to get another internship either. The main theme I seemed to see was that people went into Masters programs with only half a plan–that they only had a Plan A on how to use their degree, but no Plan B, C, or D.

Part of the reason I waited so long in my own life to get a Masters degree was that I didn’t know what major I wanted to do for my Masters degree. Ironically enough, many years ago I had looked at a communications program somewhat similar to the one I did, but at the time more than twenty years ago, I really didn’t understand what the degree was about, and I didn’t get into the program, or else I just didn’t apply. If I couldn’t explain the degree to my parents, then how could I justify it for myself? A lot changed in twenty-plus years, and it was just timing, circumstance, and a better understanding of knowing what my skills were and the need to enhance them professionally. I started out with a somewhat plan, but by the time I graduated, I had a much clearer idea of what my options were, and there was a Plan A, B, C, and D. In fact, life took a slightly different turn for me than expected, and I ended up following a combination of Plan C and the unknown Plan E. 😉 And I do that with no regrets, but I still had a plan, and I knew my options in getting my degree.

The ironic thing that happened to me this week, also related to a Masters degree, is that a fellow graduate of my program contacted me through LinkedIn, and in the e-mail conversation we had, she started to question whether it was worth getting the degree that we both had earned. She was working a retail job, and turning down full-time jobs because they were paying less than her last full-time job from several years ago. From the conversation, I could tell that the problem was that she didn’t know how to promote the fact that having her MSPTC gave her an advantage over many people, thus making her a stronger candidate for a job. (I also reminded her that some of those other tech comm jobs that paid less than her old job probably also paid a lot more than a retail job, not that there’s anything wrong with a retail job.) She didn’t have a plan or an idea how to utilize all the knowledge she accumulated over the same amount of time that I had earned my degree. In fact, she had taken most of the same classes as I had, so I knew the value of what she had learned and earned with her degree.

Between these two incidents, it got me to thinking about the value of having a credential in technical communications. How important is a credential in tech comm, anyway? I can only speak from my own experience, but I think it can help a lot, depending on your circumstances. The job market in technical communication-related positions is very competitive these days, so any advantage is a plus. One of the arguments of the article above is that getting a Masters degree is expensive. I won’t lie–it IS expensive. But spending over US$ 100,000 to get a degree? Anyone spending that much for their MA or MS is getting ripped off. After doing some research after the fact, I found I went to one of the more expensive programs out there, and yet I know that I’ll be earning that much more with my new job because of the degree in my hand. In other words, I’ll be recouping my investment within the first year or so. So, I’m not too upset in that respect.

But financial considerations aside, is it worth the time and effort? Again, I think it’s only if you have some semblance of a plan of what you want to get out of the program, and what you plan to do with the knowledge you gain. Additionally, you need to know how to promote why the credential gives you an edge over others, or perhaps even puts you on par with others in the field. You also have to understand what flexibility that education can provide you, even with a plan in place. But do you have to be limited to only getting a Masters degree? I don’t think so. Looking back (and I knew this when I started this tech comm trek), that even if I had only earned my Tech Comm Essentials graduate certificate, it already gave me an edge over others that didn’t have something like that. It did help me get two jobs during the process of earning my full Masters, after all, and even if I hadn’t completed my Masters, I felt that I had a more solid foundation to move forward in the career direction I wanted.

One of the great advantages of being the technical communications field is that it’s very broad. There are SO many specialities within this field that having a broad enough exposure can allow one some flexibility if a credential is earned. With my degree, I felt that I had the ability to get a good job in technical writing and editing, user experience/strategy, web design, content management/strategy, social media, corporate communications and e-learning design. Others in my program went in other directions with health communications, and web analytics, for example. And yet, there are so many other specialties that are within technical communications that we, as technical communicators, should theoretically have the most flexibility in the job market than many others out there. (This begs to argue my specialist versus generalist debate again.) So, in my view, unless you’ve already been involved in technical communications for a very long time, getting any kind of training, re-training or credential only adds to your professional value.

My perspective hasn’t changed much since I wrote my blog post, The Meaning of Graduating with a Masters Degree in Technical Communications, almost 9 months ago. Once I actually had my degree in hand, I just did my best to take off with it. Yes, it still took me six months to find a job, BUT I found that having both my grad certificate and Masters gave me a lot of credibility in the eyes of potential employers as well as opened some doors that I don’t think would have opened if I hadn’t pursued the degree. I initially concentrated on e-learning and m-learning in the last few months, but it was falling back on my knowledge and experience of content management/strategy and web design that ultimately helped me gain employment. And so far, I like my job, which is good.

I realized that the ID/TC Education Resources section of this blog doesn’t have as many tech comm credential programs listed, and recently I was asked for some help in identifying some schools that had tech comm programs. I was able to expand my list for the requester, but I haven’t posted that research here yet, and I hope to do so soon. I’ll post something to alert everyone of the update once it’s done.

But in the meantime, do some Googling on your own, or visit the STC Education website for more information. I know that the STC not only offers many webinars and certificate programs, they also have a special certification program as well. That would be a good place to start. As I said, unless you are already a very well-established technical communicator, getting any kind of credential, whether it be a certificate showing completion of a single course, or a full graduate degree, can only help one’s career in providing professional value to what one can offer. But, you should only get that credential if you can justify and plan a way to use it and promote it for yourself.

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So, what’s ahead in Tech Comm for 2013?

Posted on January 2, 2013January 7, 2013 by TechCommGeekMom

Shortly after the obligatory reviews of 2012 come the obligatory predictions about 2013. Sometimes such predictions are on target, and sometimes the predictions are rather ludicrous. One has to admit, though, some of the ludicrous ones do become true, and some can be purely entertaining.

So what are my predictions for 2013? Good question. I don’t really have any idea.

The past year has been a total whirlwind for me. As I mentioned in my last post, so many things happened to me that were unexpected, and there was so much more information learned than was expected that I wouldn’t know where to begin to make such predictions.

It’s also the time of year that one makes resolutions. As we know, most people have a difficult time sticking to New Year’s resolutions. I am no different. If I could keep a resolution, I would look like a supermodel. 😉 Instead, I try to set goals instead of resolutions. Goals are more realistic, because like resolutions, they are usually for some sort of better condition in one’s life, but there aren’t always time limitations as to when this goal will be achieved. I was determined to get my Master’s degree in two years. It took two and a half years, but I still attained my goal. You get the idea.

Most of my goals this year related to doing things around my house that have been waiting for years, such as remodeling my 30 year old kitchen, or putting new carpeting on the stairs. I’m also trying to see if I can try to travel more this year, because that one whirlwind trip to Portland, Oregon for Adobe Day was exciting for me, and it gave me a break from the humdrum of regular life while infusing my brain with new, uselful information. I am hoping that I can get to the STC Summit this year, but I have to see about that–it’s not cheap if you haven’t been working for a while, and you don’t have a company to pay for it. It’s on the U.S. East Coast this year, which makes the travel itself easier and more affordable, but the conference–even the early bird rates–are a lot for a newbie technical communicator. But, I’m hoping with the new job, I’ll be able to afford it. Time will tell. I’ve also set a goal that I want to go back to the UK for a visit. I love that country, and haven’t been in twenty-one years. I found out that I have a cousin that lives in London who is an educational technologist, so catching up with her in person rather than through Facebook should be fun.

But what about professionally? I start my new job as a Web Publisher on January 3rd. I’m excited, nervous and anxious all at the same time. I’m always like this when I start a new job. It’s that, “What did I get myself into?” feeling that just about everyone gets. Don’t get me wrong–I think this is going to be a great opportunity for me, but after being out of full-time work for so long, it’s going to take some adjustment to get back into the swing of things. I’m sure I can do the job and do it well. It’s just the “newness” of it all that gets me. Some find that feeling exciting, but it’s nerve-wracking for me until I truly understand my role. I want to do well, after all. So since my job is supposed to involve a lot with content management, some writing, some web design, and even a little bit of videography and audio manipulation, it should be good. They are all things I can do well, and look forward to doing. I’ve been told that if I do well, there are other potential projects beyond this one I’ve been hired for, so I want to do well. I am excited to be a full-fledged technical communicator now after waiting in the wings for a while.

So, as far as predictions, I can’t make any, but perhaps I can make suggestions–specifically suggest some technical communication goals for consideration for the next year, based on what I’ve learned in the past year.

First, THINK MOBILE. This is foremost. It doesn’t matter whether it’s for e-learning/m-learning or just for simple websites, mobile is essential going forward. I think a lot of companies are in denial of this, thinking that tablets and smartphones are a fad, but they really aren’t. I don’t have specific stats anywhere (and feel free to contribute them in the comments if you have them), but I feel like I’ve read that smartphones outnumber landlines worldwide now, and mobile devices are used much more than desktop-style devices as well. On the road, more people are likely to bring a tablet and/or smartphone than a laptop for basic information that they need to obtain. But, as we all know as technical communicators, mobile devices are not laptop replacements necessarily, so we need to write accordingly for this different devices. A huge portion of 2012 seemed to show me that tools like Adobe’s Technical Communication Suite 4 (see more information in the top right column) and other software tools are keeping up with the times, and providing HTML5 support as well as providing single-source solutions for both desktop and mobile content. As technical communicators, we need to push the agenda that these kinds of tools are essential to more efficient workflows for us, but also are an investment in content management as well.

Related to that, as technical communicators, there’s a real need to push the use of better content. There is always some crossover between marketing communications and technical communications, but in the end, from my own experience, technical communicators have a better edge in managing and writing content. No offense, mar comm writers, but there’s a point–in my view–that marketing communications gets a little too fluffy. It’s too much about the sales and gimmicky verbiage instead of really giving customers the information they need to make informed choices about products and services. Advertising is one thing, but if a customer is going to a website or app to get more information, it’s because they want INFORMATION, not a sales pitch. I’m a consumer, and I’ve also been a consumer advocate in my career, so I’ve been on both sides of this, and I have to side with the consumer on this one. A sales pitch can initially draw a content consumer into your website or app, but once that is done, you want that consumer to be either able to come back, or provide such excellent information that they don’t come back. If there’s good support provided on a site with pertinent information, then there’s customer satisfaction. It’s that simple. And yet, so many companies don’t completely realize this. I don’t know how many companies I’ve seen where the writing is…well…not up to par (to be polite), and I didn’t have the permission to fix it to be more succinct and to the point to help the consumer or audience of the content. It frustrated me to no end. And yet, when I’d try to explain to authority figures that the writing going on wasn’t working well because it was too long winded and needed to be pared down for easier reading while still getting the main points across, I was ignored. There was a Beastie Boys song called, “You’ve Got to Fight For Your Right to Party!”, and it relates to this, as it makes me think that technical communicators need to fight for their right to, well, do their jobs! We have the skills and know-how, and we can help to elevate companies that should be cutting edge to that level. I can think of so many companies that think they are cutting edge and are actually way behind instead, very much in denial. Or, for whatever reason, companies would not invest in the technical communications of the company when that’s where the money would be well spent.

I get very excited about technical communications because while it’s been a field that’s been around for about 100 years (give or take a few years), it still is working to earn the full respect that it needs. With technological advances, technical communicators have huge opportunities to really show what they can do. Right now, with the huge and quick advances made in mobile technology especially in the last few years, this is definitely a time when technical communicators can shine. We have to exert and advocate for ourselves to carve out our place more definitively. We need to adapt to the changing environments to make sure that we are not expendible, but rather necessities. We need to be multi-specialists rather than specialists.

I’m sure you get the idea by now. These concepts are what have been driven into me by the best of the best in the tech comm business in the last year, and I know this is what need to move technical communications forward. When I entered my MSPTC program at NJIT three years ago, one of the motivating factors for entering the program and continuing with the program was not only the subject matter, but predictions that the technical communications field was going to have a big surge. I want to be part of that wave, and be one of the movers and shakers of the movement. I’m hoping that all technical communicators reading this will look at the new year as an opportunity to help shake things up in the world using the skills that we have. Whether we promote m-learning, single-source content management, or just emphasize clearer, better writing, our mission is clear. Make content better for ALL consumers of information. Make this your New Year’s goal– no matter how big or small your contribution is, make your content BETTER.

If goals like that can be achieved, THAT will be what’s ahead for Tech Comm in 2013.

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Another one of those 2012 Tech Comm Years in Review? But it’s MINE…

Posted on December 31, 2012January 1, 2013 by TechCommGeekMom

It’s December 31st, 2012, and the end of another long year has come. This is the time of year when everyone starts to see the year in review posts and articles all over every media source imaginable. I’m no different– I’ve already posted a Top Ten Posts of 2012 for TechCommGeekMom. But this post is more about my reflection of the year–and what a year it’s been!

This is not to say that everything has been coming up roses for me this year. Upon reflection, there were a lot of good things that happened over the past year that were never expected and were really great. There were also things that were definitely not so great.

The not as great things included problems that my son was having at school that greatly affected his behavior, me getting pneumonia for a month last winter, losing my full-time job, and being laid off my part-time job. Just those things alone could easily make it a bad year, especially if you knew some of the details of the school problems my son was having.

But there were so many things that outweigh those negatives that for once, I can actually say that 2012 was a pretty good year for me. The first big thing was that I graduated from NJIT with my MSPTC. That was the result of two and a half years of blood, sweat and tears–sometimes literally–to get it finished. It was so much a part of what I did for a while that I actually miss it. The fact that I actually graduated, with honors no less, is surreal. I can’t believe that it’s all finished and done, when I feel like I should still be taking a class or doing something more, like writing up another paper. I was very fortunate to have made several friends in the program, even through this virtual program, and make connections that I think will benefit me for life. The knowledge I gained from the program will also serve me for life as well, I am sure. I know that NJIT was proud enough of my recent accomplishments enough to feature me as one of its “poster girls” for the Continuing Education program by featuring me in a promotional video for the school. I’m honored and still surprised that they picked me, but appreciate the nod of approval nonetheless.

The other part of what made this year exceptional was this blog. What began as a combination of a class assignment and something to do on a whim has taken on a life of its own. I don’t think anyone, especially me, would have expected anyone to be reading it with the gathering that I’ve collected over the past year. Social media has truly been key to many of the successes I’ve had this year. I’m glad that I started to become more involved professionally with Twitter and Facebook especially, in order to connect with other technical communicators. Not only did I seek to learn from other technical communicators in the past year, but I used social media as a means of marketing this blog so that my voice could be heard amongst the many great voices out there. The amazing thing to me is that my voice was heard.

Now, I did have some unexpected help along the way. As I’ve explained in the past, it was an early post in which I vented my frustrations about learning tech comm software that someone heard me very loud and clear. It was someone at Adobe, who not only heard me, but also wanted to help me. That person was Parth Mukherjee. It was very early in our contact that he wanted to help, and offered me a webinar. What, me? A webinar for someone just out of grad school? Yes, crazy as it sounded, that what he offered me and I took it. I’m glad I did. Along the way, I got to know Saibal Bhattacharjee, Maxwell Hoffman, Ankur Jain, and Tom Aldous at Adobe as well, and they constantly provided me with more opportunities and support throughout the year–many more than what are listed here. The biggest highlights of this relationship for me were doing the webinar in June that gained me initial greater exposure, and when I was invited to be one of Adobe’s guests at their “Adobe Day” pre-conference event at Lavacon. For a gal who is still new to the field to be invited to “run with the big boys and girls” was a thrill! I learned so much at the Adobe Day conference, and I had a chance to meet and get to know some of the people that I had not only gotten to know through social media, but people I revered and respect in the field. There have been so many good things that happened to me thanks to Adobe, and I don’t think I can ever thank them enough. As I’ve also said many times before, I was a big fan of Adobe’s before the connection with Adobe’s Tech Comm team, but now they’ve allowed me to become truly loyal to the company with everything they’ve done for me personally that they didn’t have to do. Thank you so much!

I also had an opportunity this year to express my technical communications knowledge in a different way–I was able to teach a virtual class in business and technical writing to Microsoft Korea through the World Learning Company. It was a unique opportunity to present information not only so the students could understand the information, but I truly wanted my students to learn the information so they could use it more often in their everyday business communications. I got great feedback from the end-of-class surveys as well as directly from the students themselves that I made it easier to understand these complicated language nuances, especially since English was a second language for nine of the ten students I had! It was a great opportunity to flex my knowledge muscles to help other people become better writers, and I enjoyed it thoroughly.

A big part of this year was all the people I met who helped me along the way. In addition to those at Adobe and NJIT, I met SO many individuals along the way that helped me through this first year of being an “official” technical communicator. I’m sure I’ll be missing someone from this list of tech comm and e-learning professionals, as there were so many, but off the top of my head, they include RJ Jacquez, Mayra Aixa Villar, Miriam Lottner, Toby Price, Barrie Byron, Jamie Gillenwater, Sharon Burton, Christie Fidura, Shay Shaked, Marcia Riefer Johnston, Colum McAndrew, Renaldo Lawrence, Joe Ganci, Sarah O’Keefe, Val Swisher, Jackie Gerstein, Anita Horsley, Scott Abel, Chad Udell, Alyssa Fox, and Karen Mahon. Each person here, and many others whom I met through social media or in person, contributed to my knowledge base and growth not only as a technical communicator and e-learning specialist, but also as a person. I thank each and every one of you for your support in taking me under your wing, but also for your friendship.

I also want to thank Gary Woodill, who is one of the m-learning gods in my eyes, for retweeting my tweet promoting my Whitepaper, thus giving it his understated blessing. That was a big deal to me for you to acknowledge it and deem it worthy of retweeting the link. Also many thanks to TechWhirl, especially Craig Cardimon, for promoting two of my blog posts in recent editions of the “Tech Writer This Week” feature on TechWhirl.com. For me, that was a huge indication that I have “arrived” in tech comm.

So, as you can see, 2012 was actually a very good year for me. Sure, I didn’t have a full-time job, and I had illness and issues that were beyond my control at home, but for me, this has ended up being one of the best years that I’ve had in a long time. My first full year of being a technical communicator hasn’t been without some bumps along the way, but through this blog, my school connections, and all the new social media connections I’ve made in the past year, I wouldn’t change a thing. What a whirlwind for a “newbie”! I can only hope that I will continue to have the support of all these wonderful people, and be able to truly practice what I’ve learned over the past year in my new adventures as a Web Publisher for BASF in 2013.

This was the year of building, and I’ve gained a fantastic foundation. Now is the time to continue to grow and move onwards and upwards! I’m anxious about 2013, but having this strong foundation, I have a feeling that it’s got the potential to be another great year.

What are my resolutions for 2013? Well, I don’t know about resolutions, but I know that some of the things that I hope to achieve, other than a firm establishment in the tech comm field, is to go to the STC Summit in May (I hope), and maybe some other conference as well, if I can afford it. I want to meet so many more people in tech comm, and absorb the information given by the best and brightest in the field. This year, I was the new kid on the block, and in 2013, I want to be part of the next generation of technical communicators helping to take the field further.

Thank you to everyone reading this, and have an incredibly Happy New Year!