Newsletter of the Society for Technical Communication, San Francisco Chapter August/September 2004

May 2004 Meeting -- Stay Motivated and Thrive!
Presented by Howard Miller
Reviewed by Sara Greenwald

A motivating time was had by all at the May 19 San Francisco Chapter STC meeting, downstairs at the London Wine Bar. For those who haven't attended recently, the monthly gatherings are a chance for snacking, chatting, complaining, STC gossip, handing out resumes and sharing tips about contacts or jobs, as well as hearing presentations. The irrepressible Howard Miller, who evolved some time ago from instructor/designer and application designer to Business Coach, delivered the evening's presentation: Stay Motivated and Thrive!

Motivators and Obstacles to Success

The presentation began with the question: what motivates us? Money, we guessed. Miller pulled out his wallet, reached into it, and held out some bills. "Do you want this? Come. Take it." Nobody moved for some time. "Why not?" he asked. Other motivators must be at work. Miller and the audience came up with:

• comfort
• recognition
• power
• autonomy
• fulfillment
• fear
• urgency
• sense of harmony
• order
• promoting social good

Any of these motivators can move us forward or hold us back, Miller stressed, depending on how we handle them. Next, Miller asked what obstacles keep us from our goals. The audience called out:

• boredom
• isolation
• fear of criticism
• lack of recognition
• lack of talent
• lack of control
• lack of connections
• lack of sleep

That last one got a laugh, but Miller said, "Be realistic. Find out whether you're a morning person or an evening person, and use that time to do your best work." He listed many more stumbling blocks, from fear of failure and an equally paralyzing fear of success, through sense of inferiority or superiority, to discomfort with confrontation and defensiveness. All, he pointed out, are conditions inside our own minds.

Solutions

What are the solutions? Be proactive, he urged. Determine:

• your goals
• what gets in the way of these goals
• the steps you can take to overcome these obstacles, and
• what the outcome of taking those steps will be.

Then take the first step, and make the outcome a habit. Don't be discouraged if you fail to follow through consistently; if you make a calendar and don't look at it for a week, that's still a week sooner than you would have if you never made the calendar at all.

Examples of Applying Solutions

Four audience members boldly volunteered to share some elusive personal goals. The audience divided into groups to help them take steps toward:

• enough writing samples -- The group determined that the problem was really an unrealistic and self-imposed goal, "I told my agent I'd send a dozen samples by Friday." The writer decided to take control by calling her agent to change the deadline.
   
• bigger triceps -- The group found the athlete inflated her goal to a daily whole-body workout. Five minutes' light lifting a day made an achievable first step.
   
• patience when shopping with my girlfriend -- The group diagnosed a shop-ophobe, and suggested alternative favors, such as cooking dinner while she shops.
   
• starting a business in document cleanup -- The group recommended that the writer advertise his interest and expertise. Keep an eye on the field for new informational flyers and talks on how to clean up documentation.

The PowerPoint slides for this presentation are on the San Francisco Chapter STC web site at www.stc-sf.org/docs/stay-motivated-thrive.ppt.

Sara Greenwald is technical writer in the Bay Area.

Copyright © 2004 by the Society for Technical Communication, San Francisco Chapter (www.stc-sf.org). This article may be reprinted in another STC publication, provided that the publication give credit to the author and to the ActiveVOICE as the source of the article.

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