I wrote this article about a year ago for TechSnips. Fast-forward to today, TechSnips is no longer hosting blog posts, so I have
slightly updated this article and re-posted it here on The Frozen Geek. While this isn't, strictly speaking, a technical post, this seemed to be the best place for it. Enjoy!
Where I Came From
It’s been about 5 years since I decided that I was no longer content to simply use the Internet as a source of information. I knew at that time that I wanted to give back to the online IT community that had helped my career along for so many years. It seemed that the easiest way to begin was to start a blog. Since I already had one created, one that had been all but abandoned, I thought this was a good place to start.
So, in May 2014 I started blogging. I started off by writing once a week about what I had learned during my MSCE studies, as it gave me a good, constant source of ideas. A few months later, I decided to launch a second blog that would focus primarily on Windows Server and PowerShell tips & tricks, guides, lab setups, and walk-throughs. This is where I ran into a bit of a wall.
I was struggling to find ideas that I thought would be interesting to others. The “Imposter Syndrome” was in full force. I just didn’t think I had anything worth sharing, certainly nothing that hadn’t already been done before. That is where I finally stalled out and all but quit writing.
Over the next few years, my writings continued but were quite sporadic as I was still struggling to come up with ideas. It wasn’t until I read an article by Don Jones titled
Become the Master, or Go Away that I realized just how much this imposter syndrome was holding me back.
It didn’t immediately break me out of my shell, but it did help me renew my interest in writing. I even thought about creating videos to go along with the blog posts. I still had the same problem though, no idea about what to write about.
How I Got Here
I have always found it interesting how timing plays such an important role in life, and this is one of those times. I had just finished reading “Be the Master” by Don Jones, and found myself resolved to start doing something right away. A few days later I read a guest post written by Adam Bertram on the blog hosted by Mike F. Robbins. The article,
TechSnips is Looking for Content and Recruiting Contributors was a good read, and I felt that it was something I should seriously look at.
By the time I got to this part of the article: “You will learn presentation skills through feedback from myself and your peers…” I had already decided that this was something I was going to do. No doubt about it. A chance to record how-to videos sounded like a great idea. Then I read the words “and you will get paid”. This was the icing on the cake!
So, I clicked on the sign-up link, provided the required information, and submitted an audition video. Waiting to see if I would be accepted as a contributor was the longest 14 hours ever. I finally received the e-mail I had hoped for! I was accepted as a contributor to TechSnips, and I was even provided with feedback on this video so that I could improve the next video I recorded.
My Experience So Far
I didn’t know it at the time, but one of the first things I would learn about TechSnips is that everything moves quickly. It can be quite a refreshing change of pace if you’re frustrated by things moving at a slower cadence. I have found that pace to be very motivating and quite exciting, and I love the fact that changes to TechSnips are made quickly and frequently as the business evolves. Keeping up with the changes was a challenge at first, but I quickly adjusted.
One of those changes that were made during my first few weeks was the introduction of contributor blog posts. The thing I enjoyed most about that change was the fact that Adam went from ‘No, I don’t think we are going to do blog posts’ to ‘yes we are, and here’s how we are going to do it’ inside of a single sentence. So, as you can see, changes are made rapidly.
The second lesson I learned was that there is always feedback being provided, and at every stage of the production process. For me, this advice is invaluable, as I am quite new to producing videos. The great thing about the advice is that it doesn’t just come from Adam but from everyone. If you have a question, whether it be about submitting a video, or setting up a recording environment on a budget, a quick post to the Slack channel will usually elicit a rapid response with helpful and valuable advice.
Having access to this group of professionals has been a wonderful learning experience, as everyone brings their own skills and unique point of view to the team.
TechSnips also successfully addressed the issue I was having with generating ideas. There is always a constant supply of ideas, both from the other contributors, subscribers and sometimes from Adam himself. Once I took a look through those lists of ideas, I realized just how much I had to offer the community. Imposter syndrome….deleted! Well, not entirely, but it isn’t as ever-present as it used to be.
The production quality at TechSnips impressed me right from day one. Every time I submit a video or a blog post, I think to myself “Yeah, that looks pretty good.” Then the editors get a hold of it and give it this incredibly polished look. I will confess to being happily surprised at how good that first video looked after the editing was complete. Now, I find myself anxiously awaiting the final product every time I submit a new video. I just can’t wait to see how good they look.
I am having an absolutely fantastic time with TechSnips! I haven’t had this much fun or felt this excited to work on a new project in a very long time. The sense of teamwork, constant advice, support, and being able to see my content published alongside so many other professionals has been quite rewarding. I cannot think of anywhere better to spread my wings and learn some new skills. I have found everything I need here; Training, guidance, teamwork, ideas, and enough work and excitement to keep me coming back for more.
I would highly recommend to anyone who is thinking about publishing content to give
TechSnips a try. There is nothing to lose from the attempt, and so very much to gain.
Photo by daniel baylis on
Unsplash
