Skill #18: Embracing the Long Game of Technical Writing

Anyone who’s been in technical writing for a few years or has attended a technical writing conference has witnessed how quickly the field has evolved. Technical writers have had to shift from Microsoft Word docs to single-source authoring; they’ve had to learn how to become project managers; they’ve had to learn basic programming skills. In short, technical writers have had to learn how to be flexible—shifting their skills and focus as needed to prepare themselves for shifts in the industry. It’s essential to surviving the long game of technical writing; however, it’s not easy. It can require continuing education outside of your 9 to 5; it can mean feeling very uncomfortable in a new setting; and, most important, it can mean, understandably, forgetting to create a enjoyable life for yourself outside of work.That’s why, in this episode, we have Jody Winter on the podcast: Auckland, New Zealand based technical writer of 15 years who’s faced all the struggles that come with embracing the long game of technical writing—and, thankfully, has lived to tell the story with insights that will help any technical writer prepare for and embrace the challenges of growing and fostering their career. In this episode, Jody shares how you can embrace the long game of technical writing, including: How to observe changes in the field and how to respondHow to respond to seasons of burnout, where you feel like your technical writing career really isn’t going anywhereAnd how to find opportunities to ramp up your technical writing skillsShow Notes: TechCommNZJody Winter on LinkedInMichal and Pawel on surviving in the dev worldWrite the Docs