I have to agree with Al. We have several telecommuting jobs where we have never met the clients in person. In some cases, these are US-based firms (even one technical writing company who prefers to outsource to us and pay Israeli rates to receive American quality writing - our writers are mostly Americans who have moved to Israel) who found us in a number of ways.
One company searched "RoboHelp" and found my name and contacted me and I've been doing their help conversions. Another contacted us after seeing posts made by one of our DITA experts who had posted on a related list. In all our cases, it has been a case of someone contacting us, rather than our going out and trying to find telecommuting opportunities and, as Al wrote, we keep our clients because of the quality of the work. Even when the dollar to shekel ratio jumped up or prices fell in the US, we still have the clients because of the quality of the work. I think telecommuting jobs are watched carefully by companies who are concerned about the time or quality of an "absent" writer but once you show that you deliver at or below industry standard time while maintaining quality, the projects usually continue. And, Al is correct about the passion for writing. There's a concept in Judaism called, "tikun olam" - basically like "fixing the world" and one person came and asked if technical writing included "tikun olam" - the chance to make the world a better place. I almost laughed and said...no, technical writing isn't about fixing the world - what you write today, you rewrite in three months. Then, I thought about what he said and realized that there was a bit of tikun olam in technical writing in that it provides a livelihood while enabling you to also pursue other interests, including writing. Anyway, telecommuting is a great way to work...though clearly it is easier to find telecommuting opportunities once you have a connection with a company, it is still possible to find work in other ways. Regards, Paula Paula R. Stern CEO, WritePoint Ltd. www.writepoint.com -----Original Message----- From: tcp-boun...@techcommpros.com [mailto:tcp-boun...@techcommpros.com] On Behalf Of Al Geist Sent: Tuesday, July 07, 2009 11:15 PM To: tcp@techcommpros.com Subject: Re: [TCP] Telecommuting Opportunities - Technical Writing,Content Development and Instructional Design Gina Greisinger asked for information on getting telecommute position, stating that her background includes over 8 years of experience as a senior technical writer and instructional designer with an emphasis in software documentation and training, and that she is an expert in a tool and Information Mapping, and that she really enjoys writing, designing and building documentation and training projects. Oh yeah, she's also a poet. Dan Goldstein wrote: ...My unverified impression of those threads is that most of us who telecommute (partially or fully) do so at companies where we used to be fully onsite.... Well Gina, for the most part Dan is correct; however, there are exceptions. I never wrote for either company I currently contract with. I got these jobs because I was at the right place at the right time and had a portfolio ready that addressed their specific needs. One company needed a hardware/software writer...someone who could jump in with little handholding and describe extremely complex electromechanical wafer processing systems. Two service manuals later, I was made the publications manager (still as a contractor). I have recently added another writer (telecommuter) to my staff (that makes two) because she had the chip manufacturing background in addition to DITA. My second contract deals with documenting and developing a context-sensitive help for a technology transfer tool for a quasi-government entity. A background in web design and previous efforts creating similar products for BLM-Alaska got this job. Remember, even if you get the contracts, keeping them is another story, especially in these difficult economic times. I've been able to keep them because I work hard at consistently delivering high quality material. I'm also extremely flexible when priorities change and I try to always have a good sense of humor. Nobody likes a grumpy contractor. BTW...Most of us have a passion for writing, or we would be doing something else to put food on the table. Al Geist Technical Communicator, Help, Web Design, Video, Photography Office/Msg: 802-872-9190 Cell: 802-578-3964 E-mail: al.ge...@geistassociates.com Website: www.geistassociates.com See Also: Fine Art Photography Website: www.geistarts.com "...I walked to work, quit my job, and kept walking. Better to be a pilgrim without a destination, I figured, than to cross the wrong threshold each day." (Sy Safransky) ______________________________________________ ComponentOne Doc-To-Help 2009 is your all-in-one authoring and publishing solution. 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Author in Doc-To-Help's XML-based editor, Microsoft Word or HTML and publish to the Web, Help systems or printed manuals. Download Free Trial. www.doctohelp.comhttp://www.techcommpros.com/componentone/ Interactive 3D Documentation Parts catalogs, animated instructions, and more. www.i3deverywhere.com _______________________________________________ Technical Communication Professionals Post a message to the list: email t...@techcommpros.com. Subscribe, unsubscribe, archives, account options, list info: http://techcommpros.com/mailman/listinfo/tcp_techcommpros.com Subscribe (email): send a blank message to tcp-subscr...@techcommpros.com Unsubscribe (email): send a blank message to tcp-unsubscr...@techcommpros.com Need help? Contact listad...@techcommpros.com Get the TCP whole experience! http://www.techcommpros.com
