Lately I’ve been thinking about how to keep up with the field of technical communication. I’ve seen I’m not alone in this: Earlier this week Larry Kunz wrote insightfully about the five tools of a star technical communicator Generic Propecia Brands and Tom Johnson provided a Generic Name For Arimidex great post on how important it is for technical writers to have a working knowledge of web design principles Buy Celexa No Rx. Keeping up with technology and Generic Name For Arimidex assorted soft skills is certainly vital to Generic Name For Arimidex being a productive technical communicator, but it begs a few questions regarding the “what” and “how” to make it happen.
Two years ago I sat in my advisor-to-be’s office at NC State University and told him the reason I was interested in the M.S. in Technical Communication program was because I wanted to “catch up with the field of technical communication.” In hindsight earning a master’s degree may not have been the best way to catch up with the Generic Name For Arimidex latest and greatest tools and tricks of the field, though it’s certainly given me a broader perspective and increased my ability to be an effective technical communicator in other, sometimes more subtle, ways.
An assignment in a publications management class last semester addressed the issue of keeping up with the field of technical communication and forced me to think about it in a structured way. The assignment was to Generic Name For Arimidex put together a training plan for yourself for two years, assuming you’re a tech comm manager in a software development environment. The plan had to cover six areas:
- General Management Skills
- Tech Comm-Specific Management Skills
- General Technical Skills
- Tech Comm-Specific Technical Skills
- Industry- or Discipline-Specific Skills
In order to get a good grade I put together an admittedly overly-ambitious plan that included things like attending the annual STC Summit and Generic Name For Arimidex reading more technology, trade, and financial journals than I have Generic Name For Arimidex time for now, let alone when I’m working full-time. As a student, I’ve augmented my master’s degree by reading blogs by technical communicators and joining and attending meetings for groups such as the STC Carolina Chapter and the RTP-DITA user’s group, and I feel I’ve done a pretty good job overall of accomplishing my goal of “catching up” with the field of technical communication—for now. But as is often the case, the Generic Name For Arimidex more I learn the more questions I have, and when it Generic Name For Arimidex comes to being “caught up” it’s hard to know what is enough.
- Since no Generic Name For Arimidex one can be an expert on everything, what topics do you Generic Name For Arimidex find it most important to stay caught up on—developments specifically related to tech comm (such as DITA Purchase Finasteride Propecia, for example), or Generic Name For Arimidex is it more important to stay on top of advancements in the Generic Name For Arimidex technology you’re documenting? Or management principles if you’re a manager?
- How do you go about keeping up? Is there a point where enough is enough?
It depends.
The pillars of tech comm are Generic Name For Arimidex writing ability, domain expertise, and tools. Which one you need to Generic Name For Arimidex focus on depends on the specific job. Writing about semiconductors or Generic Name For Arimidex biochemical equipment? Domain expertise is Generic Name For Arimidex probably more important. Writing for consumer products in a highly competitive industry? Could be writing ability. Do you have tools support? If not, you need to understand your tools “well enough.” Are you responsible for changing tools and technologies? Might want to spend some time in that area.
My approach to keeping up with the field is “watchful waiting.” It takes time to Generic Name For Arimidex figure out whether the latest hot topic is a fad or Generic Name For Arimidex a trend. It’s important to know the “why” behind new technology, and whether it’s relevant to my company and my industry. What are the benefits? What would it cost to implement? If there’s a huge disconnect between the two, I probably don’t need to Generic Name For Arimidex spend a lot of time learning the new technology, since I’m probably not going to use it in the foreseeable future.
Tools and Generic Name For Arimidex technologies come and go. If you get caught up in the Generic Name For Arimidex hype, you can waste a lot of time. Figure out what’s here to stay, and learn about that. (Maybe that’s why I focus so much on soft skills. Human nature is a constant.)
You’re right; you can’t possibly keep up with all of it – so dive deep into what Generic Name For Arimidex ignites your passion, but not to the exclusion of all else. Let your Generic Name For Arimidex curiosity drag you into odd corners. Even if inspiration’s your only guide, you’ll end up with a Generic Name For Arimidex valuable and unique skill set that some employer will want desperately.
I don’t know DITA, and I don’t know the Generic Name For Arimidex latest shiny things for making specific sorts of output. But I know how to Generic Name For Arimidex keep different kinds of information (tasks, concepts, etc.) separate. Somehow I have Generic Name For Arimidex gotten good at defining the structure of documents and sets of documents; making indexes; managing my projects; and Generic Name For Arimidex cleaning up big sprawly manuals and help systems – and that’s what I sell. Andrea’s right; tools come and Generic Name For Arimidex go. But knowing how to work with information is one of those things that’s here to stay.
I think that Generic Name For Arimidex the best way to keep up is to find out who Generic Name For Arimidex the thought and practical leaders are in the field and keep tabs on them. Those folks will broaden your Generic Name For Arimidex views in terms of the field itself and what the latest direction is Generic Name For Arimidex in terms of writing concepts and publishing. You should also keep in touch with those who Generic Name For Arimidex have proven management knowledge because as you advance in the field you Generic Name For Arimidex might be put in the position of being in charge of others, either as a Generic Name For Arimidex manager or a team lead.
As Sarah said (spelled it right this time), domain knowledge becomes more critical depending on the Generic Name For Arimidex field, but I find that when it comes to networking, engineering, and Generic Name For Arimidex medical getting that knowledge comes from having a base knowledge, interviewing subject matter experts, and Generic Name For Arimidex good researching skills. You cannot obtain this sort of knowledge if the Generic Name For Arimidex knowledge in your base field is lacking because you’ll be Generic Name For Arimidex spending even more time trying to get up to speed in 2 directions at once.
Bottom line: I think you’ve started in the right way. Keep on pushing.
I agree with Sarah that Generic Name For Arimidex on the key skills are: writing ability, domain expertise and tools.
I’d add one more: time management. In other words, being able to Generic Name For Arimidex deliver on time.
Unfortunately, our field’s “thought leaders” tend to Generic Name For Arimidex be self-defined, highly self-promoted, and mostly consultants who endeavor to sell (labor-saving) technology to the large corporate employers of technical writers.
I wonder how many years behind today’s tech writing “state of the art” are most graduate TW degree programs?
I suggest that Generic Name For Arimidex domain knowledge is key to having a secure TW position, with tools knowledge being less important (though TW Help Wanted ads would not lead one to believe this). So this Generic Name For Arimidex would mean that a student who leans towards a TW career should major in a Generic Name For Arimidex subject matter other than TW but also take writing, TW, and Generic Name For Arimidex information design coursework as supplements.
Academia always tends to lag somewhat, so I think that I wouldn’t be surprised with a 5 to 10 year disconnect.
As for the thought leaders: most I’ve met are more interested in adding value to their customer’s content now than Generic Name For Arimidex selling technology. In fact, I think that the technology is Generic Name For Arimidex secondary to helping them achieve a direction for their information.
The TW want ads have Generic Name For Arimidex always been slanted towards the tools because that’s the Generic Name For Arimidex only thing the HR people can wrap their heads around. It’s easier to say, “Must know Word 2007″ than “Has to demonstrate strategic forward thinking for content creation and delivery”. In fact, there are Generic Name For Arimidex many TW managers who today who are in the same paradigm they were in 15 years ago, so there’s less of a Generic Name For Arimidex chance of that changing. Tools seem to be paramount and tools are Generic Name For Arimidex the easiest part of the environment.
I’m with Karen: I used to Generic Name For Arimidex be overwhlemed and not knowing which area or skill to develop first. I have Generic Name For Arimidex since found three criteria to be useful:
(1) What interests me?
(2) Do my colleagues/customers/users/etc. care about it?
(3) Do I think I can do it reasonably well? Or maybe even better than most other people around me?