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Subject:Re: A sobering encounter (So now what?) From:kcronin -at- daleen -dot- com To:"TECHWR-L" <techwr-l -at- lists -dot- raycomm -dot- com> Date:Mon, 2 Dec 2002 09:53:08 -0700
I'll endanger myself by saying this, but part of why companies feel that
secretaries and engineers can write the manuals is that the manuals
produced by some "real" tech writers really aren't any better.
Whether you want to call it bad writing, misplaced priorities, or general
cluelessness, the sad truth is that I've seen a LOT of genuinely BAD doc,
written by "official" technical writers. They have helped create the
cynical/Scroogelike mindset so many of us are encountering in the current
job market.
I've met a surprising amount of tech writers who obsess over the wrong
things, and who do not know A) how to add value, or B) how to
diplomatically draw attention to their own efforts/accomplishments.
A huge component of job security is to make a *conspicuous* contribution.
This does NOT mean whining to anybody who will listen about how hard you
worked on the style guide. This means accomplishing something that the
company actually needs, and making sure the right people know that YOU did
it.
They don't teach that at tech writing school.
You love technology. You love to write. Great. But that doesn't mean
you're doing something your company NEEDS. Figure out what that is and DO
it, even if it isn't clearly defined in your job description. We are hired
to SOLVE PROBLEMS. Offer solutions, not sales pitches for your favorite
software. Or even sales pitches for your profession itself. Sell what YOU
can do.
Maybe I'm not being loyal to this trade by not getting on the "let's show
them how important tech writing is" bandwagon. Sorry. But I haven't found
all tech writers to BE equally important. Just calling a spade a spade.
I just try to show them how helpful *I* can be. Who knows? Maybe if we ALL
did that, it might help our overall reputation...
Keith Cronin
The fact is, sometimes, you can clap your hands, but Tinkerbell still
dies.
- Bruce Byfield
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