Re: lurkers and lurking

[Jeroen Ruigrok/asmodai <asmodai -at- wxs -dot- nl>]

-On [20020423 21:00], Paul Strasser (paul -dot- strasser -at- windsor-tech -dot- com) wrote:
>> >Sure, we lurk. We are trying to learn, because to a great extent, we are
>> >the tech writers of the future. We are the ones with whom you will be
>> >competing, not just for new positions, but for the positions you already
>> >hold--and we are better trained, better educated, and better motivated
>> >than many of the current group of tech writers who seem to have gained
>> >employment in (what used to be)a high-demand employment field.
>>
>> This is a very American mindset, if you pardon me.  You can easily gain
>> employment and excel without competing.  Ones learn most from those who
>> one works with, no opposes by competing.
>>
>Actually, it's a very cartoonish version of American business.  The whole
>"better trained, better motivated blah blah" stuff comes across as silly to
>myself (and I'd venture a whole lot of other techwriters)- especially when
>this person seems like a pod regarding instructors and learning in college.

*chuckle*

That might very well be true.  I will without any problems concede to your
experience there. :)

>It's nice for a kid out of college to have self-confidence, but
>self-delusion is another matter.  There's a woeful lack of evidence of
>motiviation, training, and education that will help this student understand
>how to work in an organization.

What I found very interesting is the major difference in how Curriculi Vitae
[CV/resumes] are.  Most of the American ones I saw had clear sentences on
how the company would be much better if they would hire this person.  I've
never really seen this in the Dutch [European] market, where the CVs are
more factual.
Is/was there a reasoning behind the approach of profiling oneself more, in
my eyes a bit more narcissist [but that is probably due to cultural
differences], in this way?

>BTW, you can excel at your job without competing - even in America.  But
>unless someone hands you a job (perhaps that's what happens in the EU) you
>must, of necessity, compete against other candidates for the position.

Well, it is not as if you just get a job reached out. :)

One still must show his or her worth during a job interview, if you mess
that up for some reason, you still don't get the job.

>It's not gladiatorial, but it is competition. Once you're in a job, you
>adapt, learn, cooperate, get the job done.

Well, yes, I assume any person with a common sense would do.  Of course,
there is a still a group of einzelgängers [lone wolves] who like to show how
great they just are.  Those are everywhere.
Personally I just prefer to learn from those around me and have a good time.

-- 
Jeroen Ruigrok van der Werven / asmodai / Kita no Mono
asmodai -at- [wxs -dot- nl|xmach.org], finger asmodai -at- ninth-circle -dot- org
http://www.softweyr.com/asmodai/ | http://www.[tendra|xmach].org/
Teaching should be such that what is offered is perceived as a valuable
gift and not as a hard duty...


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