Friday, January 03, 2014

Looking for a great start for the year 2014!


2014 has already begun, and this is the third day of the New Year. We already had a very good start for the year 2014 when AAP formed the government in Delhi bringing about a change in politics and change the bureaucratic system in India. This has given me an inspiration to bring a change among ourselves because to achieve something great, you need to change yourself.

First things first, I would like to take this opportunity to wish all my readers a very happy new year. May this year bring loads of happiness and success in your life and you are able to achieve all that you want to do this year. There are a couple of things that I would like to do this year, and that is 1) Write, Write, and Write and then 2) Share, share, and share. So, all in all, I would like to collaborate with all of you because this is the need of the hour to collaborate. January is the month where we need to identify our goals so that we are sure of what we will do throughout the year. Today, I would like to share something interesting. Just recently, someone asked my opinion on what I feel about the writing profession and how one can grow or think creative in this profession. At first, I thought to myself, “Huh! Excuse me! Who I am to provide my opinion and if I would really do then will it valued” But then I thought it is not harm to share my opinion if someone have asked about it. So, here I am with my few cents on what I feel once must do in order to excel in the profession of writing:
  1. Join a Technical Writing or any other writing forum and try to be responsive towards the queries that are generated in the forum. This will not only give you a presence but also you will also learn on your own. This is called social learning or learning via collaboration.
  2. Try to join an initiative by any forum such as STC, TWIN, or MITWA, and be a part of team that is close to your heart. I have been a part of MITWA-NEWS team (that is a newsletter published by MITWA group) since last 7-8 years and my role is to design the newsletter using MS Publisher so this gives me opportunity to think creative.
  3. Create a blog of your own and try to write something (maybe 500 - 1000 words), and then share among the forum. You can write anything that includes your interest areas or anything in technical areas or any Technical Writing area that you have learnt while working on a project.
  4. Try to write for a newsletter published by STC (Indus), MITWA (MITWA NEWS), or any other newsletter or magazine, and be a regular contributor. This will give you loads of visibility.
  5. In addition, if you like to read then try to write a review of the book after you have read the book.
  6. Last but not the least, learn any new tool like Articulate, Captivate, and so on and develop a sample project on your own. A sample can be a portfolio about you or any presentation that would showcase your skills.
There might be more than these but if you do these things, then you can surely explore a lot of areas and grow in the writing profession.

Happy Writing and have a great start to the year 2014 !