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Tag: communication

Yes we can

I stayed up all night to watch the elections in the United States. Thinking I couldn’t stay awake, I didn’t attend any events in Copenhagen and chose park myself in front of the computer and TV. I forgot about adrenalin. The TV and the internet kept me going. They were a perfect team for me. I saw President-elect Barack Obama give his speech, and not long after that, Shakesville posted the full text from the Guardian. What a night! I didn’t get to sleep until 8.30 in the morning. I thought McCain gave a very gracious speech. Obama’s acceptance speech moved me to tears (of joy). Granted, I am a fan of his rhetoric. It could get me interested in politics! What a delight if we move from sound-bites to proper discourse, dialog, conversation, listening – communication. I know there are many challenges ahead of the US and the world.…

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Leading Virtual Teams in the Age of Complexity

The American Management Association (AMA) is producing some great – and free! – webcasts these days. Today’s webcast was valuable to me for my life outside work. When I am not at the day job that puts bread on the table and provides fun challenges for a technical communicator, I am the “SIG Advocate” for the leaders of all the special interest groups (SIG) in STC. We are spread across 9 time zones and have different areas of focus. All our activities are volunteer – no one gets paid. So how do we manage ourselves and each other and get the job done? When I saw that today’s topic was “Leading Virtual Teams: Managing When People are at a Distance”, I had to sign up to pick up some tips. We are all intelligent and independent adults, and we all lead busy lives and have diverse interests. How can we…

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The Dictionary Evangelist

Two people shared this great link with me, and I made some technical editors happy by sharing it with them. Now I will share it here! Listen to Erin McKean talk about the dictionary in a presentation from TED. Yes, she talks about the dictionary and where it is headed – or not. It is hilarious and fun and full of ideas to ponder. She never flinches at new words the way technical writers can (when marketing turns a noun into a verb)! 🙂 I don’t think she would be offended if she saw how my 10-centimeter thick Webster’s New Twentieth Century Dictionary (Unabridged) raises my monitor on my desk. She’s probably think that was extremely practical. She loves books, as she declares in the video, but the inside is what is so exciting and dynamic that it may no longer fit the form that we are familiar with today.…

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