Re: Versatility - how much is a good thing?

[melonie -dot- holliman -at- AMD -dot- COM]

Howdy,

Been there, done that; created the T-shirt. I have to admit
that your projects are a bit more varied than most, but
within the realm of jobs I have had in the past.

As to whether the variation is positive or negative,
it matters what you want to do. I like the "jack of all
trade" jobs; I would get bored doing the same type of
job all the time. I have gotten my last two jobs because
I could do such a variety of projects. It is really positive
if you want to contract since the more varied the skills
the more jobs you are qualified for.

If you want to be a specialist, that kind of variation hurts
your career. It just depends on what you want.

We have had the generalist vs. specialist discussion
at least a few times before. You might want to check
out the archives.

Melonie R. Holliman
Technical Writer
CG MarCom
Advanced Micro Devices

> -----Original Message-----
> From: houndz [SMTP:houndz -at- PYRO -dot- NET]
>
>
> I know tech writers often wear a number of different hats, but is this
> usual? I enjoyed having lots of varied work, but I'm not always
> satisfied with the results.  It's not that I couldn't handle any one
> aspect given at least minimal prep time, but like most assignments in
> the waning days of the twentieth centry, they're already weeks overdue
> by the time I receive them. Will "jack of all trades, master of none"
> experience be a help or a hindrance at future positions? Am I correct in
> thinking most writers are more specialized? The company is extremely
> unstable, it's definitely time for me to investigate future
> possibilities.
>
>

 From ??? -at- ??? Sun Jan 00 00:00:00 0000=