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Subject:Re: Re. writer/engineer relations From:James Perkins <perkins -at- BILBO -dot- NTC -dot- NOKIA -dot- COM> Date:Tue, 15 Aug 1995 09:34:51 +0300
> Over the years, I've learned the truism that engineers, and their
> scientific and other colleagues, are people, and except for those who
> are Microserfs <grin>, have lives outside their work. Most of these
> lives are interesting, and most of the people are worth getting to
> know. I've long since made it standard editing practice to chat a bit
> about non-editing stuff too, and the result is amicable relationships,
> and much more tolerance for my work. (I'm not sure why it took me a
> full week to understand this, other than the vacation coincidence.
> Yes, sometimes I do need to be hit with a 2X4 to see the obvious...
> remember, I'm a "professional idiot", but the latter half of the
> phrase occasionally applies solo.)
This is the basic stuff that psychologists have been talking about for
years...there are the work things (the content), then there are the
relationship-building activities (the process) to every relationship.
Obviously, that's a major oversimplification, but application of the
principles really works.
