Discussion about the IDSA

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I have waited a while to enter this fray, plus I was enjoying myself in Belize for 8 days and wasn’t ready to get into it.

First, I will lay out my current"jobs that aren’t my real jobs":

  1. moderator for Design in Asia forum for Core77
  2. member of DMI
  3. commenter in certain groups of Linked In, especially Design Thinking
  4. so many different positions in IDSA, that I don’t feel like typing them all here.

I do the above things for different things for different reasons. Core77 gives me immediate feedback as to what is going on in some areas of the profession. I volunteer to do some things for it but it also gives me a lot of content (usually not deep but broad)

DMI, I currently only take from, except for the money I give to be a member. It gives me deep knowledge in a certain area.

Linked In gives me a chance to both hear and speak about topics and get feedback from people both inside and outside the profession. This has been invaluable.

IDSA has allowed me to develop as a person, both professionally and personally. I have gotten tremendous benefit from the networking and the conferences. IDSA contacts have also helped me to find jobs and I have helped others find jobs. I also work to make connections between people who could benefit from the connection. But that is a tiny part of what I have gotten. By volunteering to elected positions I have learned valuable management skills, especially when it comes to convincing people who are not being paid to do something. after being on the Board I learned that IDSA is open to the thoughts and directions of the members and that we can choose the directions that IDSA goes into by doing it. I created the International Liaison Officer positions and became the first one for Asia. I have built a dialogue between Asia and the US. I am now writing an new position description that will allow me to build relations between IDSA and the US Government. Where else can you write your own job description and make differences in the profession. IDSA gives only a little if you only give a little. It gives a lot if you give a lot.

I guess the long and short of what I am saying is you have to look for balance in what you want in life. Choose your destiny and find the outlets that allow you to meet it. Don’t expect all avenues to give you the same thing in life. That would be boring.