building your portfolio
DESCRIPTION
Tips and tricks on how to build a portfolio of technical communication samples.TRANSCRIPT
BUILDING YOUR PORTFOLIO
STC Atlanta Employment Workshop | January 23, 2010
A little about me… Technical communicator
since 2002 2009/2010 Second VP for
STC Atlanta Loves scrapbooking,
travelling, and reading
Why do you need a portfolio?
Image source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/devoinregress/3505849421/
What goes in a portfolio?
Only your BEST work!
Yes! Uh, no.
Good cake: http://www.flickr.com/photos/9329630@N03/4102372852/Bad cake: http://cakewrecks.blogspot.com/2009/07/love-is-in-air.html
Tell “how” not “what”
What was the problem? How did you solve it? What was your role in the project? What tools did you use? What did you learn? Where did you fail/succeed?
A simple page layout
How do you present a portfolio?
Presenting your portfolio
Can it speak for itself?WebsiteBlogCDPaper
Be ready to talk about it. Match the format to the work.
My presented portfolio Created in Evernote
(www.evernote.com) Is meant to be
presented in person Can access from
anywhere with Internet connection
Requires no coding
My website Good for personal projects Book reviews Articles Anything you write, read, or
think about that’s related to your field
Uses Wordpress with a “portfolio” category
Online portfolios made easy
http://www.carbonmade.com/
But what if I have no experience?
But what if I have no experience? Borrow from your personal life:
Presentations (like this one!)HobbiesCommunity work
Show off school projects
Personal websites Writing Layout Content strategy Information architecture Wordpress Design
Hobbies: Scrapbooks are like help systems…
Brainstorming Content strategy Page layout Organization Writing Design
Scrapbook image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/obd-design/2374177769/
Remember…
Tell “how” not “what” Only include your best work Pick a format that works for you Don’t be afraid to show personal work
