No, I am not dead. Present circumstances have reminded me that I am very much alive. I’m considering what to do with this blog…whether to continue it, discontinue it, or combine it with another blog I have that delves more into my personal life. This blog is called “The Scribe’s Pen” and while I’ve always talked about more than just transcription I’ve neglected this blog because transcription has been relegated to the back burner of my job description. Do I miss it? Yes, some days I do. Got the chance to transcribe about 15 minutes worth of footage yesterday, and it actually felt good. But honestly, most days I don’t miss it. While transcription put food on the table for many years I am disheartened by the fact that I spent many years homing a skill that has become heavily outsourced. While there are still many domestic transcriptionists they are finding it very difficult to make a living due to outsourcing and the subsequent cheapening of what we do. The average salary for a transcriptionist is actually less than it was ten years ago. Without delving into all the whys and hows (technology is the biggie) we’re quickly becoming what phone operators became late in the 20th century…slowly obsolete.
For many years I took comfort in the fact that I had a specialized skill in which there was great demand. I knew I could always find a job. Yes, I could probably find a transcription job pretty quickly still, but it would pay no where near what it used to pay unless I want to pound the keyboard 12 to 15 hours a day. I know I would burn out very quickly at that rate.
I am very thankful that I’ve been given the opportunity to hone my administrative assistant skills, but fancy title aside, I’m just a secretary, and those are a dime a dozen too.
So, I move forward into a very uncertain future as even the job I have now seems temporary due to the economy and the fact I work for a non-profit. There are definitely days my faith is shaky (like today). I rest in the fact that God has taken care of me and my family so far, and I have to trust that he’ll continue to do so.
