A tribute to TW bosses

[Deborah Ray <debray -at- RAYCOMM -dot- COM>]

Hi, all,

I've been reading the postings about getting started
in TW with great amusement...thanks for sharing. Something
I've noticed in many of the posts is a mention of a boss
(or several) bosses that gave your first job or gave you
opportunities to grow as a TW. I have such a boss in my
past, too, and I thought I'd share the experience:

Several years ago, I decided to quit a good job (decent
pay, loaded with responsibility [some writing], and pretty
rewarding) and finish my undergrad degree. After waffling
for a bit, I ended up in a TW program, thanks to an excellent
TW instructor who latched onto my interest in the subject and
helped me explore the possibilities.

A short time later, she encouraged me to apply for a job
in the university's computing services department. So, I took
my writing sample (yes, singular) and applied. The interview
went pretty well, although I figured I wouldn't get the job
because I knew of several other applicants who had more
experience and had completed more relevant coursework than
I had. At the end of the interview, I was asked to take a
department newsletter home and review it, as creating the
newsletter would be part of my responsibilities.

Well, I took the newsletter home...and ended up making extensive
comments, suggestions, and corrections. (Okay, I bled on it....)
And, as instructed, I went back to a second interview with the
newsletter in hand and showed it to the hopefully-soon-to-be boss.
He looked at it. Puzzled for a minute. Scritched his head a few
times. And then he said, "Why would you want to work for someone
who apparently does such crappy work?!" I commented that I didn't
think he did crappy work; instead, I just thought that any writing
had room for improvement and that I thought that working with
people (no matter what the positions) was an excellent way to
learn.

He hired me. (He apparently *liked* that I had the guts to bleed
all over his newsletter and liked that I thought I would contribute
as well as learn on the job.)

And I did learn. A LOT. I learned a about writing, computers,
Internet technology, operating systems.... This boss, though,
was different than any I'd had before: he was willing to learn
from ME. Just as he'd stand over my shoulder and help with a
computer question, he didn't mind that I'd stand over his shoulder
and say, "No, write it like this...." In being able to contribute
like this, *I* became a better writer. Because this boss was more
concerned about putting out excellent publications than he was
about his status as a "boss" or a "senior technical writer," he
let me grow and admits to having grown himself.

And you know what? We got married (had to quit the job, though).
And, five years later, we continue to learn from each
other--only now *I'm* the boss, of course. ;>)

Am I undermining my credibility by admitting that the Ray&Ray
team once started this way? No, I don't think so. We've found,
through being willing to learn from each other, that we actually
have complementary skills and talents: he's loves the techie stuff
and I love the writing, although we can both switch roles if we
need to. Together we make a great team.

So, that's my story of the great boss who helped me get started
in TW. A little-known fact about the Rays....

BTW, today is Eric's birthday, so be sure to email bad
jokes about getting old!

Take care,
Deborah


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