Inking a Harmonious Career and Managing It Well

Fellow writers, in Dec 2016 I got a fantastic opportunity to present a session at the 18th STC India Annual Conference @ Hyderabad. The topic I chose was 'Inking a Harmonious Career and Managing It Well' - in tune with the theme of the Conference.

In fact, I was surprised and honored to receive a token of appreciation for a poem I wrote for the event:

The session I took was focused on Writers trying:

1. To enter the field of writing
2. To survive in the field of writing
3. To thrive/grow in the field of writing

Skills for Surviving in the Field of Writing

To survive, I feel writers need more of psychological traits apart from the basic skills required to enter the field. A few pointers:

• Curiosity
• Collaboration
• Interviewing and listening skills
• Patience and Perseverance
• Read the standards followed by organizations for writing.
• Focus and attention to details
• Keep it simple and straightforward (KISS)
• Openness towards learning

Skills Required for Thriving and Growing in the Field of Writing

Thriving and growing in the field requires us a few more traits over and in addition to the skills required to enter the field, and to survive. To thrive and have a steady growth in our career, we must:

• Be responsible
• Proofread our work
• Appreciate good work
• Honestly share information with peers
• Provide ideas for improving UI/website/templates better
• Be approachable for everyone
• Learn to say no
• Negotiate for better timelines
• Learn to communicate
• Perform competitive analysis
• Take training sessions to help improve overall communication in the organization
• Lead without a title, as Robin Sharma says. It matters.

To read in details about what the above pointers entail, have a look at my article recently published in the October 2017 Edition of INDUS, the Award Winning newsletter by STC India Chapter.

Oh, and don't miss attending the next STC Annual Conference @ Fortune Park On December 7, 8, 9 2017! :)