By Thad Konieczny
Technical communication is a very important field in the world of business, but it can be difficult to know how to get started in the industry. Luckily, organizations like the Society for Technical Communication have many opportunities to learn from professionals in the industry. On October 17, 2024, the STC hosted a panel discussion with three speakers, each with their own unique backgrounds and experiences. The first, Chantal Cyrier, was a college student and intern at Cloudflare who was just starting out in the world of technical communications. The second panelist, Kim Lindsey, started her career in a different field and switched to technical communications later in life, currently working at Cinecraft Productions. Finally, there was Jayme Perlman, a former gig worker (or mercenary, as she jokingly referred to herself) who had recently settled into a career working for Github. The panel was hosted by STC member Ashley Gordon. Despite the different career paths each panelist took, several themes came up consistently throughout their answers about the soft skills needed in the technical communication field.
Be Flexible
One of these recurring themes of the discussion was flexibility and being open to new experiences. Lindsey in particular stressed the importance of this skill in her career, as she started out in a completely different field. Her college degree was in biology, but after being laid off, she started searching in other fields, and came across technical communication. Her ability to adapt served her well in her career change, as well as preparing her for how the industry of technical communication would change over the years. Perlman also spoke about the need for flexibility in freelancing, and encouraged the audience to try out a variety of different industries to see what fits best.
Trust Your Abilities
All three panelists addressed the need to trust oneself, in both one’s talents and ability to self-motivate. Perlman emphasized the importance of this skill in the world of freelance work. She acknowledged the fear of instability that sometimes prevents people from going into freelancing, but said that if one trusts in their own abilities as a writer, and their ability to motivate themself to take care of their work, they will be able to sustain themselves off of gig work. Trusting one’s own abilities came up again later in the talk, when the subject of AI inevitably came up. The panelists had an overwhelmingly negative view of the use of AI, with Lindsey asserting that AI could never be as creative as the human brain. The general consensus among both the panelists and the audience was that if one is confident in their own writing abilities, then AI is all but useless.
Build Connections
One final theme was the importance of networking. The panelists found two main reasons why networking is a valuable skill: it can help with searching for jobs, and it can help with actually building the necessary skills for the field. Cyrier spoke about how her experiences as a college student and an intern were heavily defined by her ability to connect with other people in the field. She encouraged prospective writers to speak with as many people as possible in order to learn what they know, better preparing them for a future career. She expanded on this need for networking by stating that the most valuable thing she learned in college, outside of the actual content of her program, was how to work and communicate with others. Additionally, Lindsey recounted how necessary networking was to her career switch, and how her connections in other industries helped her get her foot in the door.
When it comes to career readiness, it can be difficult to know what soft skills are necessary to succeed. While the literal job requirements and qualifications are explicitly listed by employers and industry professionals, many of the less technical skills can only be learned from actually doing the job. Talking to people with experience in one’s chosen field can be one of the best ways to learn about soft skills, and STC’s Career Panel was a perfect example of this. The insight shared by the three panelists was extremely valuable, providing a variety of perspectives and different experiences that could help prospective technical writers no matter what kind of specific career path they have planned.
