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Entries Tagged as 'Career'

100 Words You Need To Speak Any Language even Chinese and Ancient Greek

February 25th, 2010 · View Comments · China

Did you ever wish you could speak French and read all those great novels? Or maybe Spanish, so you could travel to South America and have more than Buenos Dias? Or Arabic, Chinese, or Japanese.  Most of us never start. It’s too hard. But, if I told you that all you need is 100 words [...]

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5 Careers Opportunities for IT Professionals in China

February 23rd, 2010 · View Comments · China

One of my best friends, based in Nashville, Tennessee, is worried about his career prospects. He’s turned 40, had a decent job as an IT developer but this has been sent to India. He was furious but now he’s just depressed. Where to start? Many are worried that their jobs will be off-shored to India [...]

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12 Steps To Getting Started as a Business Consultant

January 26th, 2010 · View Comments · Business Model, Career, Strategy

Most people think it’s difficult start a career as a business consultant. I used to think the same in my early 20s when I started in IT. In retrospect, I should have made more efforts to establish myself as a consultant earlier; the benefits certainly outweigh the downsides. As luck would have it, I was forced into a consultancy role when I lost my 9-5 job. Time to learn to hustling and bring in business.

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How do you measure technical documents? What metrics do you use?

November 21st, 2009 · View Comments · Career

One of our tech docs team was fired yesterday. Why? Technical documents provide no value.
This is how Management sees it.

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How Outsourcing Can Boost Your Tech Writing Career

November 16th, 2009 · Comments Off · Career, Tips

Image by Ivan Walsh via Flickr

Most technical writers see outsourcing as a real threat. But, if you look at it from another angle, it’s one huge business opportunity.

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How to Study Technical Writing Online & Get Certified

November 10th, 2009 · Comments Off · Career, How To, Technical Writing

The University of Limerick, Ireland offers an excellent online course for those who want to study technical writing at home.
This university has a pretty amazing campus, specializes in the Arts and provides a conveyor belt of freshly-minted technical writers to Microsoft, Google and IBM in Ireland. It’s one of the few universities in Europe with [...]

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5 Reasons Why Women Are Better Technical Writers Than Men?

November 7th, 2009 · Comments Off · Career, How To

Technical Writing attracts women. They’re very good at it and make great team leads.
Maybe I’ve been very lucky but I believe women are far better as technical writers than men.
Here are five areas where I think they have the edge of the guys.
1. Communication
When in entered technical writing, I assumed my days would be spent [...]

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Is a Degree In Technical Writing Worth The Effort?

November 5th, 2009 · Comments Off · Career, Google, How To, India

Do you have a degree in technical writing or technical communications? Was it worth the money? If you had a second chance, would you have chosen this or opted for another career path?
One of my younger cousins has started her degree in university in Limerick, Ireland. Not the place most of us think of as [...]

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What’s the Highest Daily Rate You Can Get as a Technical Writer?

November 5th, 2009 · Comments Off · Career

Knowledge is power. Knowing the daily rates of others in your industry helps you negotiate fees and get a better deal.
I’ve worked in the US, UK and now here in Asia and have seen a vast difference in the rates that writers work for.
Some of my friends in India work for $15 per hour, which [...]

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STC Increase Fees: Is the STC still value for money?

October 21st, 2009 · Comments Off · Technical Writing

Sarah O’Keefe (Scriptorium) discusses STC’s new dues structure: Dues are going up; Printed publications are no longer included in basic dues; No chapter or SIG membership are included in the basic dues.
She adds that while reaction is largely negative, she finds value from her STC membership and gives some examples and reasons to join/stay with [...]

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Is Freelancing Right For You?

October 9th, 2009 · Comments Off · Career

Ariana Green on HarvardBusiness.org asks Is Freelancing Right For You?

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How to Get Out of Technical Writing and into Better Paid Jobs

October 5th, 2009 · View Comments · Career, India

Many IT professionals, technical writers included, have seen their salaries frozen or reduced over the past 18 months. Contractors are suffering the same fate as short-term projects dry up.
However, several of my colleagues have managed to move out of technical writing and into other, better paid lines of work. Here’s a roundup.

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What type of skills do Technical Writers need?

June 15th, 2009 · View Comments · How To

What type of skills do Technical Writers need? Technical writers often have a degree in English, technical writing, the technical field for which they are writing, or a combination of these.

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5 Tips on How to Make a Cold Call and Survive!

June 15th, 2009 · Comments Off · How To

5 Tips on How to Make a Cold Call and Survive!

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How to Interview Technical Writers

June 14th, 2009 · Comments Off · How To

Here are some tips for interviewing technical writers, for example, if your company needs to hire a contractor to write some documentation for your next release.

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