Title: STC's Annual Conference Experience
1STCÂ s Annual Conference ExperienceProving the
Value and Sharing the Knowledge
2Overview
- Finding value in the STC conventions (Emily)
- Bringing session value back to the team (Judith
and Laura) - Persuading management of the value (Amy)
3First Impressions
- Overwhelmed
- Inspired
- Camaraderie
4Diverse Sessions
- Technical Topics
- Latest software tools and technology
- Project management
- Back to Basics
- New to the field
- Students
- Graduates seeking first Technical Communications
job - Creative
- Science photography
- Creative writing workshops
- Alternative Career
- Marketing and advertising
- Scientific writing
5Creative Writing-Painful but Inspiring
- Creative Writing Workshop for Technical
Communicators - (Presenters Amy E. Himes, Ron Blicq, Marella
M. Colyvas, Susan Haire) - Part 1 Loosened writing muscles, used character
interviews to fine tune characters, discussed
how to write dialogue - Part 2 Learned to hook the reader, described
and interpreted a scene - Technical writing is comprised of rules,
standards, templates, and structured writing.
Creative writing is free form and allows you to
stop judging what you are writing and be open.
6Finding Your Lost Creativity
- Think about your creative dreams
- Work in micro movements
- Write morning pages
- Make a date with your artist self
7Three, 10, and Change
Communication Principles to Live by and Other
Rules to Break
8Three Laws of Communication
- Adapt to your audience
- Eliminate noise
- Use effective redundancy
9Three Laws of Communication
- Adapt to your audience
- Consider how your audience uses your information.
Example print vs. online - Be prepared for mixed audiences. Example Various
roles, knowledge levels
10Three Laws of Communication
- Adapt to your audience
- Eliminate noise
- Wordiness, grammar mistakes, graphics, flashy
design can detract from your message - Boring content flashy layout audience
attention?
11Three Laws of Communication
- Adapt to your audience
- Eliminate noise
- Use effective redundancy
- Present information in different forms. Example
steps and visual concept and example - Use consistent terminology in each form.
- Consider multiple channels of communication.
Example integrated documentation and training
12Three Laws of Communication
- Adapt to your audience
- Eliminate noise
- Use effective redundancy
- Goal We must strive to maximize, not what we
write, say, or draw, but how much our audience
gets out of our documents . . .
13Golden Rules of Effective Technical Communication
- Cut the fluff fluff kills
- Use active, concise language
- Avoid mushy verbs Examples might, can, choose
to - Avoid vague language Examples more, some, a lot
14More Golden Rules
- Fluff
- If you want to get access to XYZ
application, you can complete this form. - It is recommended that you save your document
often. - You can perform this task more quickly using
the Tools option.
- Concise
- Complete this form to get access to XYZ
application. - Remember to save your document often.
- Use the Tools option to perform this task.
15More Golden Rules
- Contemplate before you illustrate
- Do you really need it? You dont need pictures
of text. - Do you need all of the picture?
- Does the graphic enhance the text?
- Is the graphic placed properly? Never
place a graphic before you
mention it.
16More Golden Rules
- Be consistent.
- Pick a term and stick with it. Example headset
vs. receiver - Describe interface actions consistently and
dont worry about being boring. Example
press, push, select, choose, click
- Tips
- Choose initiates an action such as opening a
window or carrying out a command. Example From
the File menu, choose Save. - Select does not initiate an action such as
highlighting a menu item. Example Select the
file format. - Click instead of click on or click the OK
button. Example Click OK. - Press instead of hit or push. Example Press
Enter.
17More Golden Rules
- Remember paper is permanent
- Errors can destroy credibility.
- Users may not know all rules but pick up on
mistakes at - some level.
- You wont be there to clarify weak or unclear
information.
18The Changing English Language
- You can
- Split an infinitive.
- End a sentence with a preposition.
- Use contractions.
- Use direct address depending on what youre
writing. - Start a sentence with a conjunction.
- Examples
- Split Infinitive
- Select this option to automatically
save your document. - Preposition
- Select which application you need access to.
- Conjunction
- Or, call Client Support Services
for assistance.
19The Changing English Language
- You can
- Use first person.
- Leave out the serial comma, unless it will be
confusing. - You should
- Use one period at the end of a sentence.
- Use active voice.
- Examples
- Commas
- Include your title, phone number and email
address. - Use Active Voice
- Complete the form to get access.
- You can find documents on Atlas.
- Avoid Passive Voice
- The form must be completed to get access.
- Documents can be found on Atlas.
-
20Resources
- Woe is I The Grammarphobes Guide to Better
English in Plain English - Chicago Manual of Style
- STC web site www.stc.org
- Three Laws of Communication, Golden Rules and
Changing English Language presentations in
S\Common\Resources
21Food for Thought
- Develop Departmental Style Guide to promote
consistency - Continue to learn about audiences
- Develop a database of user profiles
- Seek peer reviews and customer feedback
- Lunch and learn the Write Stuff or other
communication tips
22Persuading Management of the Value
- How can I convince my company/boss/CFO to let me
attend an STC conference?
23Benefits
- Networking
- Support/reinforcement
- Shortcuts
- Alternate solutions
- Knowledge
- New Technologies
24Why not?
- Short staffed
- Will be out of the office
- Not in budget
- Cant send everyone
- Its never been done before
- Whats in it for the company?
25The Proposal Process
- May be written, verbal, or some combination of
both - Anticipate the questions your company/boss/CFO
will ask - Ask at least one colleague to review it before
submission
26Proposal Components
- What are you proposing?
- Why does it need to be done?
- What problem can it solve?
- Why are you the right person to do it?
- What happens next?
- How are you going to implement it?
27The Case for Value-Addedness
- Give presentation upon return
- Plan session attendance jointly
- Recruit for open positions
- Write article/white paper
- Create STC library
- Implement what you learn
- Mentor a new employee
- Find solution for targeted issue
28Round Two
- Be optimistic
- Offer options
- Chapter
- Regional/SIG-related
- Future conference presentations
- Provide examples
- Revise and resubmit proposal
29After the STC Event
- Follow through with the proposal promises
- Share knowledge gained
- Offer to help others with this process in the
future
30In Closing