Re: Career longevity

[Gail Hodgson <gail -at- HPATO -dot- AUS -dot- HP -dot- COM>]

Shelly La Rock asked how long most of us stayed in our jobs, and if we
went willingly when it was time to go.

Most tech writers I know get bored after working 2 to 3 years for the
same employer. In most companies, the tech writers work on very similar
projects. After a while it all gets a bit repetitive ... and you need
to find something new to write about!

OTOH, some companies don't have a full time job for a tech writer,
but the don't want to pay contractor rates. A slimey company may hire
a writer full time (at a much lower salary) and after a few months say
"too bad, so sad, there's no more work for you to do, good-bye". This
is not all that common, but it's something to watch out for when applying
for a job.

I'd say that at least 95% of the time, a good tech writer chooses to
move on to more interesting pastures. (It's why so many of us do contract.)
I know of very few cases where a good writer was let go.

Hope that helps to cheer you up!

Gail Hodgson
gail -at- hpato -dot- aus -dot- hp -dot- com

> I was reading the misc.writing newsgroup a few weeks ago
> and read a posting by someone saying that it's rare for
> a tech writer to stay at a job for more than 2 or 3 years.
> His reasons for the short stays were that companies usually
> let TW's go after a short time, not because the TW quits
> or takes a different job.

> Is this true???  I realize that it's  possible for anyone
> to get let go from a job, but this guy made it sound like
> this is the norm, and that there's no TW's out there who
> can keep a job for more than a couple of years.

> Just curious, and hoping for a longer lasting job.

> Shelly La Rock
> smlarock -at- mtu -dot- edu