Are you looking for an online job? It’s a pretty smart move, especially with the pandemic today. You can have a stable career at home without compromising your family’s health. But what job can you apply for?
If you have some writing skills in check, you can try out becoming a technical writer!
What Do Technical Writers Do?
Technical writers compose pieces of writing to make complex information easily understood or guide them on how to use the technology. Mostly, topics range from technical or academic content such as recent studies, computer applications, and medical procedures.
The output can be through instruction manuals, reference guides, white papers, and more. It can also be shown on web pages, social posts, or press releases.
Though it may sound quite hard, you can become a technical writer as well. Here are 7 essential skills you should have.
Knowing Your Audience
Every technical writer should know who they are writing for. Some materials might be quite hard to understand. It’s your job to relay the information that your target audience would easily consume.
How does your audience think? Can they understand the jargon? If not, can you make the information palatable without using them?
It all boils down to knowing your audience, how they think, and what appeals to them.
Technical Expertise
Some content might be really technical for some readers. It can be a study about economic fluctuations and GDP. Some might involve a statistical analysis of a trend in remote working. It can even be a manual on how to install a new accounting software.
You need to have the technical expertise to explain and guide the readers properly.
No, you don’t have to get a degree for it (Although it would be a plus for some topics). But your writing should have academic prowess and accuracy in it.
Research Skills
What if you don’t have any background knowledge on a topic? Well, your research skills will come in handy. Almost all the information in the world is present online. It’s just a matter of finding the most accurate ones.
Know where to look for the proper information. If you can’t understand specific content, you can search on Google.
If it’s still not enough, you can use other informative channels like Quora, professional forums, and even Reddit threads.
It might take time. But if you can learn a topic from scratch, you can probably create content that the readers would understand from scratch as well.
Writing Skills
It’s one thing that you understand the information. It’s another to relay and make the readers understand as well. You should have the writing skills to make things simple.
Equipped with your English proficiency, you should be able to write instructions and material in a straightforward manner without compromising accuracy and correctness.
You can also incorporate infographics and charts to make your audience visualize the data clearly. In this way, you can provide valuable resources to your target market.
Communication
Communication is essential for success in remote working environments. Do you know how to communicate well online?
It’s easy to get misunderstood with a simple statement. For example, multiple exclamation points or UPPERCASE STATEMENT CAN ELICIT MISUNDERSTANDINGS!!!
Watch for these nuances to avoid friction with your team — polish your communication skills for better collaboration in the long run.
Teamwork
You will not be working alone in this field. You will be collaborating with different departments like marketing, operations, graphics, and more.
But do you know how to play with a team? Can you collaborate and value each other’s strengths and weaknesses?
Teamwork is necessary. After all, your ideas will generate better output when harmonized together.
Learning Attitude
There will be advancements in every technical field, especially with how things are today. Practices are constantly changing for the better. Can you cope up by learning new things?
You should have a learning attitude to be up-to-date in your niche. Check valuable resources in your field. It can be through newsletters from a reliable website. Or a discussion in forums and professionals groups you are part of.
With this, you can be continuously relevant in your chosen expertise.
Conclusion
Do you have what it takes to become a first-rate technical writer? Hone these essential skills and watch as you grow in this career.
If you’re looking for opportunities in this field, you can check this link for more information. Cheers!
