Vision Day Update

Contributed by Emily Toone, Carolina Chapter President

ech stocks are up! Blue chips are back! Stock market madness continues! Everywhere, we are encouraged to invest. And Vision Day 2000 was no exception. Only the message wasn't to invest in the stock market, or in dot-coms, or even in a savings account. The message was "Invest in Yourself." And what better investment tool than STC?

How can you invest in yourself by supporting STC? Well, the answers were plentiful at this year's Vision Day. A quick polling of the participants revealed the following top three ways they use STC as an investment tool:

1. As a professional development tool — Monthly meetings offer speakers and topics that are of interest to members. Whether the topic is geared towards tool knowledge or career growth, the end product is professional development. The training programs offered by the chapter are an ideal way to learn new tools as well as strengthen soft skills. Finally, the Summer Conference provides an arena for attendees to sharpen their professional skills as well as increase their knowledge base. (Don't forget this year's Summer Conference on August 11-12.)
2. As a networking tool — The Carolina Chapter is fortunate to have a virtual cornucopia of networking opportunities each month. The monthly membership meetings provide a wonderful chance to network among our peers. And our SIGs (Special Interest Groups) offer the perfect chance to focus on a select area and network accordingly. Whether it's editing, management, online skills, or independent consulting and contracting, there is a place for members to invest in themselves through SIG networking.
3. As a way to "give back" — Many of the Vision Day participants stressed how rewarding it is to invest their time and energy by giving back to the technical communications community. This underlines a particular challenge to the chapter leadership. How can we make volunteering in STC more appealing to our members? The answer lies in restructuring volunteer positions so that they require a manageable commitment of time and energy. The end result will be a greater number of volunteers willing to invest their resources in the chapter. This will, in turn, strengthen the chapter and provide greater opportunities for all members.

Each year, the primary goal of Vision Day is to look ahead and create a sort of wish list for the chapter. Among this year's wish list items are: the concrete formation of a mentoring program, the addition of more peer-led training programs, and a greater emphasis on increasing awareness of STC in the business community. If you have any ideas or suggestions concerning these items (or if you want to volunteer some time to them), please e-mail me at emily_toone at hotmail dot com.

I'd like to take a moment to thank everyone who participated in Vision Day, especially the new members. Everyone's enthusiasm and commitment made it fun as well as productive!