My Technical Skills Philosophy: Curiosity, Improvisation, Confidence
Curiosity
Through classes like Writing on the Web and Software Documentation, I’ve learned that acquiring a technical ability has less to do with learning a specific software than it does cultivating a curious approach to technology. The truth is, as much as I wish I could snap my fingers and become an expert coder or a power user in PhotoShop, the only way that I can truly acquire these technical skills is to understand the theories and general processes behind how these programs work. For instance, regardless of what software updates are made in the next year to RoboHelp, I am confident that I will still be able to use it to create an online help system, not because I know every technical detail of how RoboHelp works but because I understand the basic idea of setting up books and topics to form the table of contents and have a knowledge of writing software documentation. This hits on the value of “theory” in this program. We study time-trusted theorists in our field so that we can understand that new teaching pedagogy that unsettles us because it emphasizes digital literacy or so that we can transcend the technical difficulties we experience when the newest software update to Final Cut Pro arrives.
Improvisation
Another valuable lesson that I’ve learned through this program is how to improvise with technology and use free or low-cost alternatives to industry standards. The reality is, even if a person is exposed to every high-end Adobe product on the market there is no guarantee that the company that person will work for in the future will be able to provide that person with those same industry-standard tools. As a technical writer, I see it as my job to be flexible and creative and know what tools are right for the job and how I can modify those tools to do other jobs for which I don’t have access to the proper or most professional tools. For instance, I’ve learned how to wrangle PowerPoint to edit photos when PhotoShop is not available and how to use Jing as a screen-capture alternative to the more costly Camtasia.
Confidence
Yet another valuable lesson I’ll take away from the program is confidence in defending my training and title as a technical communicator and writer. I used to peruse job ads and be discouraged that I couldn’t read and write code in C++ or Python or that I wasn’t “versed in SQL.” Today, however, I choose to focus on what I know instead of what I don’t know, and add the things I don’t know to my list of things I’d like to learn. Because of this program, I view myself as a symbolic analyst who can use words and visuals to persuade, interpret complex information, solve problems, create meaningful narratives, and promote social change. In fact, I’ve come to realize lack my technical expertise in certain areas can actually be used for good in that I’m better able to empathize with users and explain complex information in simple terms. This brings me to what I love best about technical writing: essentially, it is helping humans, and this what I want to do.
Connection to Course Work
To demonstrate my ability to use technology to invent a text and create a highly usable and professional-looking document, I’ve chosen to share an asset map that shows the location and information related to free and low-cost medical clinics in greater Little Rock. To demonstrate my ability to use research that utilizes technology to deliver an argument for a specific rhetorical situation, I've chosen to share a website called the New Domestics Collective that I created based on forensic and ceremonial Aristotelian techniques.
Through classes like Writing on the Web and Software Documentation, I’ve learned that acquiring a technical ability has less to do with learning a specific software than it does cultivating a curious approach to technology. The truth is, as much as I wish I could snap my fingers and become an expert coder or a power user in PhotoShop, the only way that I can truly acquire these technical skills is to understand the theories and general processes behind how these programs work. For instance, regardless of what software updates are made in the next year to RoboHelp, I am confident that I will still be able to use it to create an online help system, not because I know every technical detail of how RoboHelp works but because I understand the basic idea of setting up books and topics to form the table of contents and have a knowledge of writing software documentation. This hits on the value of “theory” in this program. We study time-trusted theorists in our field so that we can understand that new teaching pedagogy that unsettles us because it emphasizes digital literacy or so that we can transcend the technical difficulties we experience when the newest software update to Final Cut Pro arrives.
Improvisation
Another valuable lesson that I’ve learned through this program is how to improvise with technology and use free or low-cost alternatives to industry standards. The reality is, even if a person is exposed to every high-end Adobe product on the market there is no guarantee that the company that person will work for in the future will be able to provide that person with those same industry-standard tools. As a technical writer, I see it as my job to be flexible and creative and know what tools are right for the job and how I can modify those tools to do other jobs for which I don’t have access to the proper or most professional tools. For instance, I’ve learned how to wrangle PowerPoint to edit photos when PhotoShop is not available and how to use Jing as a screen-capture alternative to the more costly Camtasia.
Confidence
Yet another valuable lesson I’ll take away from the program is confidence in defending my training and title as a technical communicator and writer. I used to peruse job ads and be discouraged that I couldn’t read and write code in C++ or Python or that I wasn’t “versed in SQL.” Today, however, I choose to focus on what I know instead of what I don’t know, and add the things I don’t know to my list of things I’d like to learn. Because of this program, I view myself as a symbolic analyst who can use words and visuals to persuade, interpret complex information, solve problems, create meaningful narratives, and promote social change. In fact, I’ve come to realize lack my technical expertise in certain areas can actually be used for good in that I’m better able to empathize with users and explain complex information in simple terms. This brings me to what I love best about technical writing: essentially, it is helping humans, and this what I want to do.
Connection to Course Work
To demonstrate my ability to use technology to invent a text and create a highly usable and professional-looking document, I’ve chosen to share an asset map that shows the location and information related to free and low-cost medical clinics in greater Little Rock. To demonstrate my ability to use research that utilizes technology to deliver an argument for a specific rhetorical situation, I've chosen to share a website called the New Domestics Collective that I created based on forensic and ceremonial Aristotelian techniques.
