From the STC President

 

The Now World of STC

By Linda Oestreich
President, STC Board of Directors

 

 

This May, at the Technical Communication Summit in Minneapolis, I began my tenure as president of STC. Since that time, many people have asked me what my goals are as president. On the slides for Leadership Day at the conference, I used the themed logo you see above. The tag line “The Now World of STC” is similar to Paula Berger’s tag line of last year, “The New World of STC.”  

I chose the new themed logo you see above (designed for me by Tom Barnett from the Phoenix chapter) because I wanted the Society’s staff and volunteers to continue the many great programs that were begun or enhanced under Paula’s leadership, while emphasizing the importance of moving forward. Pema Chodron, a Buddhist nun in the Tibetan Vajrayana tradition, elegantly presents the concept I had in mind in these words:

Now is the only time. How we relate to it creates the future. In other words, if we're going to be more cheerful in the future, it's because of our aspiration and exertion to be cheerful in the present. What we do accumulates; the future is the result of what we do right now.

These words resonated with me and helped me see that my goal is to bring about an understanding that what we do now creates our future. To support this goal, I will rely upon what I know and what I learn from others to help steer a steady course. Of course, to do so, I’ll rely on the constant and skillful support of STC’s executive director and staff, the other members of the Board, and you.

Things about Me

As we begin this year, here are some things you should know about me:

• I understand that we do this work for the Society by choice—each of us for our own reasons.
• I support and cheer our volunteers and offer advice and resources often.
• I trust others to do the work they say they will do or graciously bow out if they can’t.
• I know how to face risks and make difficult decisions.
• I own up to my mistakes and then move on.
• I understand that other parts of our lives often have to be addressed before our work with STC.

My Promise

I promise to talk about more concrete STC things in my next article. This time, it was important to me to tell you about my hopes for the year and my philosophy about our work for the Society.

Please share your thoughts and questions with me. I’ll answer your notes or send them on to those who can. Send your notes to me at pres@stc.org.

I know the year will bring challenges, but it will also bring great success and accomplishments. It’s going to be a great year—starting Now.

Linda Oestreich
STC President
pres@stc.org