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| | Posted on Wednesday, October 13, 2010 - 08:24 am: |    |
101013
DEAD-END?
by Ralph Liebing, RA, CSI, CDT
Cincinnati, OH
You’re a specifications writer, right? OK, then you’re in a “dead-end job”! Right? Well, I bet that on a bad day, or a very gloomy day, you have had some feelings along this line.
You’re where you are and doing what you do because of education, training, ranging experience, depth of knowledge, flexibility, understanding and acute insight-- you have solutions where others have problems. You’ve performed other functions in your office [or other jobs]and have worked to develop a mindful of possibilities for most every circumstance that arises. You’ve done other work, but an opening and an opportunity came along and attracted you to your present position-- did you plan that? Came out of the blue? Worked your way “up”?
Now, though, the road you’re on has a guard rail barrier at the end-- and a yellow “No Outlet” sign [bent at least slightly askew]! Beyond, there may be a ball field, soccer field, woods, dump, or other semi-developed function. So because of where you are, your future is limited-- your choices restricted!
Hardly! First it depends on YOU and your attitude and outlook. As screwy as things are these days, I have a hard time figuring out where each of you are in regard to what you feel or believe about your work-- or perhaps how other people view your individual efforts. The inherent perfection of the spec writer seems to serve in a good place, but then there is much else that is flawed, or marginal, and one often wonders if specifications are out of vogue, muddled, or things of the past lingering on. There seems to be all the hoorah of the electronic software and not the work product produced-- not the guts of the documents [even the drawings]. Almost an attitude of “don’t care how you got here just so you got here”-- the skill being pushing the right button, or inputting the right command [more what you want done physically than what is necessary to accomplish the mission and creating the correct project circumstance].
Rest assured none of us ever answered the “what- do-you-want-to-be-when-you-grew-up” question, with “specifications writer”! [I have to go revisit the answer I used to give…..]. In the vast list of jobs or work positions, I would guess SW would show up-- accompanied by a long explanation. But then there are a lot of instances like that. Any way, it simply is not something you ever were exposed to [even in architectural school!] and find it only when specs appear in the work of the office. Just as some people seem to love a very hazardous or messy job [usually they pay well], the choice is individual and the end results a matter of pride and reward [non financial]. We commit anyway, and set our eyes in a new direction!
So we wind up with some bad days when we hate our work, and few really good days when we feel appropriately rewarded by what we did to solve a problem or how our array of skills and knowledge came to be useful—and appreciated.
Funny thing! As you get closer to retiring [yeah, we’ll all get back that tradition again!] you may well come to find that what you see as dead-end, is really your GOAL! You’ve achieved a position or status-- a standing that is quite satisfying and where you feel your work is worthwhile and most useful. This may be a function of time, where the longer you've done this, the more it becomes the reward and the very good feeling of job well done. No matter the status or stigma you may endure, or what you contribute [too often in complete isolation], you know what you did made the difference-- flashing-light!; horn blowing; fist pump; cheering………………………..
Goal!!!!! |
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