So I have probably said this before, but it can't be overstated: If you are in the industry I work in, remember to take pictures.
Why is this coming up again you ask? Well, I am mid-review again. In May-June I tightened up my CV, did a personal statement & position description, and somehow managed to narrow a list of over 200 referrers down to the 25 they wanted (for some reason they wanted quite a bit fewer this time around). The item for July-August? Update my submission binder, and so of course oh so recently I have been thinking about things I have no record of - or at least no good record of.
Which brings me to this: save everything and take photos. My kids this summer were curious as to why I still have the draftings I did for drafting class as a freshman at CMU. That I guess may be overkill from a portfolio standpoint. I probably won't be using those pages to land a job anytime soon (although with the economy the way it is and my renewal an unknown maybe I do have a job as a draftsman to look forward to). But along with those plates in that drawer are most of the drawings I did in grad school as well as the drawings from when I was a TD at MSMT.
What's not in there? There are only drawings I did from two projects at CSSI. I guess if I had to pick two I picked good ones, I have the 1996 DNC and the '96Vote project for ABC. But I was also the project manager for maybe a dozen shows at the Marriott and I have exactly zero plates from there. I did a great showdeck with automation tracks and access hatches for some Christmas show - zip; really cool automated asian fan and storage box - nada. Over the time I was at CSSI I probably did upward of 50 projects and I have drawings of two.
I think I have photos of about 6.
It's hard to make yourself look prolific when you don't save any of the evidence. I think I actually did a little better at TEN than CSSI. By then websites were more ubiquitous and I managed to get some photos digitally. I've got nothing for drawings though.
So if you are out there and you're working remember you are going to need these things and digital files and photos don't take the storage space and caravanning my paper drawings did. Whatever you're doing, get some pictures.
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
Take Pictures!
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2 comments:
> It's hard to make yourself look prolific
> when you don't save any of the evidence.
I'm running into a similar problem with my promotion process. This is the first year I'm eligible so I went and pulled up the 36-page long form (everything in the government is a form, dontcha know) and guess what they want? Basically my entire work history, complete with dates.
Sure, I know I was the lead advance for the PM of Singapore in Houston about seven years ago, but I can't remember the exact month or year of the visit, let alone the date. Same with all the others-- FPOTUS Clinton in Austin, Gore in New Hampshire, etc. All of these accomplishments I can ballpark but I have a feeling that's not what they're looking for.
They also ask things like, "List all instances where you testified before a grand jury or as a witness in a criminal prosecution of a case you investigated." Well, again, I've done that several times but trying to go back over half a decade and figure out exactly when is a serious pain.
It sure would have been nice if someone had given us a heads-up when we first came on the job that this sort of thing would be necessary at some point down the road. If I'd known, I would have been keeping a little diary of all my work-related assignments and this whole process would take me 1/10th the time it's apparently going to.
One would assume all that testimony should show up in a LEXIS search, yes? The rest would be harder.
It never seems important at the time, does it?
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