Convention Idea – Engage your technology

by

The roundup of ideas for providing more career/professional elements at conventions is here.

Most of my "convention suggestions" for professional events have focused on, well, the actual conventions themselves.  So as I brainstorm other ideas, something else has come to mind.

Making job and professional elements part of the convention website and forums.  People are going to be going to the website for information and to network on the convention – so add a professional subsectrion if it fits.

Some ideas:
* Add a career section to your forums.  People can discuss jobs, what they'd like to see, etc.  Have people who regularly speak at the con on careers (or organize those events) moderate it.
* Consider a "going pro" section of the website to have pro-attendees network, see events, etc.
* See what kind of job-oriented newsfeeds, job feeds, etc. may be available for the "pro" part of the site or forums.
* Form a mailing list for career-oriented convention information.

There's plenty of other possibilities I doubtlessly haven't come up with.  But if you're going to add serious pro elements to your convention, why not go further with the website?  It'll keep interest, attention, and help promote your ambitious ideas so people get involved.

– Steven Savage

Stereotype-fu: Choose your stereotype!

by

This is going to be the first in an ongoing series of columns on what I call "Stereotype Fu" – the art of using stereotypes to your advantage in your career.

A lot of us fannish and geeky types end up stereotyped – as we well know.  Trekkies, fanboys, lifeless gamers, nerds, fangirls, etc.  We're use to it, and often a little afraid of it – we're used to being viewed negatively due to simple associations, even when the stereotypes are not totally negative (or negative at all).

BOOKS could be written about why this happens.  My simple summary is that on the neutral side people like to find ways to classify things easy, and on the negative side some people need a group to look down on (and that drags into issues of the culture at large).

However, when we're starting businesses, interviewing for jobs, at work, etc. we have to deal with them.

I want to talk about using them to your advantage.

Read more

Wisdom Rot

by

Remember that great advice you got ten years ago that is entirely irrelevant to your career and you wonder why you're still following it?  Remember that industry that would be perfect for your career that is now a smoking economic ruin of failed dreams, bad ideas, and lawsuits against the accounting firms?

Or do you remember that piece of advice that stuck with you since childhood?  That helpful concept that you got from someone much older than you that got it from some else?

We get experiences and advice that are useful for our lives, and useful at best for a limited time.  Some things are seemingly forever – some lessons are not.

Read more