Becoming a professional is a lot of work. Not only is there an actual lot of work to do inside of work, but there's a lot to do outside of work, too.
I decided a while ago that I wanted to change my Twitter name, that I wanted to create a website, and - after matriculating into the Higher Education program - that I wanted to change my blog's domain name. Whew!
You might ask why... and the answer is strictly professional. My old Twitter name - abundntsunshine - meant nothing, particularly because I live in Michigan where we don't have a lot of sunshine. I wanted to create a website because, hey, that's what information professionals do, right? And, I wanted to change the blog domain name from being solely about libraries to being more inclusive of my interest in higher education (not that I believe we shouldn't still live.love.libraries). More than anything, I wanted to create a cohesive online profile.
So then the challenges started. Not only would I have to come up with a semi-creative and relevant Twitter and blog domain name, but I'd have to find the time to change all of the links in various spaces. Between LinkedIn, my School of Information profile, Facebook, Twitter, and my resume, it's nearly impossible to keep up with everything - let alone change three important pieces of information everywhere. That's why it's taken me until December to do so. But I'm pretty satisfied with the results.
Connect2EdInfo is my new Twitter (@connect2edinfo) and blog domain (connect2edinfo.blogspot.com), and my website is simple - alissatalleypixley.com. It was my attempt to keep my online profile professional, and for it to represent what I'm interested in and what I hope to work on in my career.
It's a lot of work to continually put myself out there in a way that is representative of my professionalism. But I think it's worth it - more and more people are reading my blog and it's my hope that the new name change will begin attracting broader audiences on Twitter and on the web. Enjoy (and thanks for reading this self-promoting post :) - hopefully there are some lessons learned for all.
Showing posts with label twitter. Show all posts
Showing posts with label twitter. Show all posts
Thursday, December 15, 2011
Friday, May 20, 2011
Not even going to go there... and here's why.
So, if you are knowledgeable about the "information world," or follow any librarians on Twitter or in the blogosphere, you've most likely seen something about Seth Godin's Monday blog post on "The Future of the Library." I happened to read this on Monday, and on Tuesday my Twitter feed was full of remarks, comments, posts, responses, criticisms, and so on.
When I originally read the post, I bookmarked it to comment on in my blog this week. However, after seeing the uproar on Tuesday, I think I learned a valuable lesson... the easy way? I'd wanted to analyze this blog post, remark on my agreements and disagreements, provide my thoughts on the future of the library. But then I thought about my credibility. Just starting to put myself out there, it could be a huge mistake, I realized, to comment on this article without reading responses of my colleagues and those in my networks. If I want to be viewed in the information and education world as a reliable and innovative source, I absolutely cannot repeat what those who are very visible have already said without adding something new.
Yes, I have thoughts on Seth Godin's blog post. Yes, they are thought out. And yes, they've probably already been hashed out somewhere in this vast digital space. I just cannot, therefore, justify creating a passionate post that ignores what others in the field are saying.
To me, part of being a strong, successful professional is considering what my colleagues are saying - whether I agree or disagree. To ignore these people would be to ignore the fact that we all need to work together - on some level - for the success of our field. To ignore my colleagues would be to ignore what they have learned in their institutions, from their patrons, and from their experience.
So, before I go running my mouth (or fingers, in this case) about what I think, I need to consider what others think. And, I'm realizing that that takes time, energy, thought, and more time. To all you who do this consistently - kudos. And to myself, lesson learned.
When I originally read the post, I bookmarked it to comment on in my blog this week. However, after seeing the uproar on Tuesday, I think I learned a valuable lesson... the easy way? I'd wanted to analyze this blog post, remark on my agreements and disagreements, provide my thoughts on the future of the library. But then I thought about my credibility. Just starting to put myself out there, it could be a huge mistake, I realized, to comment on this article without reading responses of my colleagues and those in my networks. If I want to be viewed in the information and education world as a reliable and innovative source, I absolutely cannot repeat what those who are very visible have already said without adding something new.
Yes, I have thoughts on Seth Godin's blog post. Yes, they are thought out. And yes, they've probably already been hashed out somewhere in this vast digital space. I just cannot, therefore, justify creating a passionate post that ignores what others in the field are saying.
To me, part of being a strong, successful professional is considering what my colleagues are saying - whether I agree or disagree. To ignore these people would be to ignore the fact that we all need to work together - on some level - for the success of our field. To ignore my colleagues would be to ignore what they have learned in their institutions, from their patrons, and from their experience.
So, before I go running my mouth (or fingers, in this case) about what I think, I need to consider what others think. And, I'm realizing that that takes time, energy, thought, and more time. To all you who do this consistently - kudos. And to myself, lesson learned.
Sunday, April 17, 2011
Readings: Semadeni, Blowers and Reed, Fontichiaro,
Wow, final week for blogging for SI 643. My goal is to continue doing so weekly, with a focus on my library work. But for now, I'll discuss the readings for this last class...
Semadeni - When Teachers Drive their Learning
Semadeni's article about professional development (PD) in his district was quite encouraging. The Fusion method of professional development for teachers based on coaching, mentoring and observing simply made sense and seems to be much more effective than what I know about other PD (where teachers mostly sit in a room all day and hear presentations). The interactive ideas of involving teachers in their learning process in a real way seems effective and motivating. I also like how time is set aside for this (and he makes great points about the amount of time that teachers don't have outside of school) and also how it provides teachers choice in how they develop professionally. Finally, the idea of fostering leadership within schools is something I see is lacking - it is quite hard to "advance" professionally in a traditional school system while this method provides teachers with those opportunities.
At first I thought, why are we reading this? We aren't going to be teachers. But, we are, in our own ways - we will be in instructors who have a say in how things are run in our libraries and we can bring these ideas of professional development with us. Why can't librarians do this for each other? Maybe not in exactly the same way, but in a similar way - coaching observing mentoring. I bet that anyone in a new position could use an approach to professional development that is highly engaging and where they can direct their own learning.
Blowers and Reed - The C's of our Sea Change: Plans for Staff Training, from Core Competencies to Learning 2.0
This was an interesting article - written in 2007 but still applicable today. It seems that staff do need to have core competencies when it comes to technology but that very few libraries take the time to do training on things that are assumed people would know. I like the Four Tier's model and the idea of play - a lot. When people get to play, they don't think of things as work. Further, this model pushes collaboration which provides automatic community building among staffs. The more collaborative and "fun" something is, the more people will want to discover how new Web 2.0 tools can be useful to them and their work. And, I'm betting that those who needed this instruction in 2007 most definitely need it in 2011. With all of the new tools available online, it can be overwhelming to jump into one that people have been using for years now (ahem, Twitter).
This article, in it's own way, applies to something on which I'll undertake soon. For the Enriching Scholarship, U of M's week-long technology symposium, I'm co-instructing a Computer 101 class. We'll talk about what a browser is, how to open multiple tabs without closing a browser, what right-clicking can do, how to download something from a website, how to put a usable link into a PowerPoint presentation... etc. These all may seem like things people know how to do - but they don't and it hinders their efficiency and abilities to understand how to use computers and not fight them in their work. I'll follow up with a blog post about this in the first week of May :)
Fontichario - Planning an Online Professional Development Module
What I liked most about this article was that it recognized the changing needs of staff and how, even in tough financial times, librarians can do outreach for instruction and purposes of getting others excited about new tools. Again, the idea of "play" was emphasized and I cannot express enough how glad I was to see it. Even children don't play enough anymore in schools - their experimental classes like music are being replaced with training for standardized tests. So, the ideas of adults playing - and passing that passion onto students - is pretty exciting. Further, this module forces instructors to pave the way for thinking about how Web tools can be used personally AND professionally and to consider the privacy and safety issues which are still being defined overall in the world of the web.
This week's reading, like many of the others, provides me with resources to consult when thinking about technology instruction and training, and how to truly engage the learners in the process. Paired with the Fusion model, I can envision a comprehensive PD program involving both social and technological learning. Pretty exciting stuff :)
Semadeni - When Teachers Drive their Learning
Semadeni's article about professional development (PD) in his district was quite encouraging. The Fusion method of professional development for teachers based on coaching, mentoring and observing simply made sense and seems to be much more effective than what I know about other PD (where teachers mostly sit in a room all day and hear presentations). The interactive ideas of involving teachers in their learning process in a real way seems effective and motivating. I also like how time is set aside for this (and he makes great points about the amount of time that teachers don't have outside of school) and also how it provides teachers choice in how they develop professionally. Finally, the idea of fostering leadership within schools is something I see is lacking - it is quite hard to "advance" professionally in a traditional school system while this method provides teachers with those opportunities.
At first I thought, why are we reading this? We aren't going to be teachers. But, we are, in our own ways - we will be in instructors who have a say in how things are run in our libraries and we can bring these ideas of professional development with us. Why can't librarians do this for each other? Maybe not in exactly the same way, but in a similar way - coaching observing mentoring. I bet that anyone in a new position could use an approach to professional development that is highly engaging and where they can direct their own learning.
Blowers and Reed - The C's of our Sea Change: Plans for Staff Training, from Core Competencies to Learning 2.0
This was an interesting article - written in 2007 but still applicable today. It seems that staff do need to have core competencies when it comes to technology but that very few libraries take the time to do training on things that are assumed people would know. I like the Four Tier's model and the idea of play - a lot. When people get to play, they don't think of things as work. Further, this model pushes collaboration which provides automatic community building among staffs. The more collaborative and "fun" something is, the more people will want to discover how new Web 2.0 tools can be useful to them and their work. And, I'm betting that those who needed this instruction in 2007 most definitely need it in 2011. With all of the new tools available online, it can be overwhelming to jump into one that people have been using for years now (ahem, Twitter).
This article, in it's own way, applies to something on which I'll undertake soon. For the Enriching Scholarship, U of M's week-long technology symposium, I'm co-instructing a Computer 101 class. We'll talk about what a browser is, how to open multiple tabs without closing a browser, what right-clicking can do, how to download something from a website, how to put a usable link into a PowerPoint presentation... etc. These all may seem like things people know how to do - but they don't and it hinders their efficiency and abilities to understand how to use computers and not fight them in their work. I'll follow up with a blog post about this in the first week of May :)
Fontichario - Planning an Online Professional Development Module
What I liked most about this article was that it recognized the changing needs of staff and how, even in tough financial times, librarians can do outreach for instruction and purposes of getting others excited about new tools. Again, the idea of "play" was emphasized and I cannot express enough how glad I was to see it. Even children don't play enough anymore in schools - their experimental classes like music are being replaced with training for standardized tests. So, the ideas of adults playing - and passing that passion onto students - is pretty exciting. Further, this module forces instructors to pave the way for thinking about how Web tools can be used personally AND professionally and to consider the privacy and safety issues which are still being defined overall in the world of the web.
This week's reading, like many of the others, provides me with resources to consult when thinking about technology instruction and training, and how to truly engage the learners in the process. Paired with the Fusion model, I can envision a comprehensive PD program involving both social and technological learning. Pretty exciting stuff :)
Sunday, April 3, 2011
T...T...T....Twitter
So, Twitter. I actually can't wait to read people's reactions to this "assignment" (rather, to this professional development opportunity). The tweets thus far have been interesting, informative, and some of them, kind of funny.
I joined Twitter circa 2009, started tweeting a bit about ed tech, and then stopped once my job didn't require me to read article after article after article on education. Before class on Monday, I rejoined the Twitter world and started following some professional library people but also news and tech sites, really trying to get a feel for Twitter before this week's assignment (rather, this week's professional development opportunity). I tried using TweetDeck and then found that HootSuite might be a better fit for making "streams" and fully utilizing Twitter. I actually tweeted and retweeted my five #si643 hash tags all week (instead of once an hour on Sunday) so I've been engaging with this social media tool now for a couple of weeks. I must say, I'm not sure how I feel about it. Its SO MUCH INFORMATION (talk about info overload, fellow si500-ers) so short it almost makes my head hurt. I also got the HootSuite app for my android phone, so I'm fully plugged in. It's been fun seeing what others have posted with the si643 hashtag and I must admit it is fun when someone starts following me and when I get a RT. I'm even thinking (kinda sorta not really) about changing my name on twitter because it has nothing to do with libraries. But, we'll wait and see cuz I'm getting a follower-base and don't want to lose that.
As for the part about starting to follow professional people based on the blogger's we followed followers (say that 10 times fast)... I couldn't find two of them on Twitter (Librarian is In, Information Wants to be free - though her blog is down right now and has been for the last 2 hours), one must approve my request (Not so Distant Future), and the other doesn't follow many professional folk (Gypsy Librarian). I searched the two I couldn't find by name, by blog name, and searched their blogs if I could. Not so Distant Future actually listed her witter name on her blog (what a concept! ;), and Gypsy Librarian took a minute to find because his twitter name is gyplib and doesn't come up when I searched Gypsy Librarian or his name. So, needless to say, I had to step outside of the box to find my network of 25 (I can't see Not so Distant Future's followers yet because she hadn't approved me). So, I defaulted to Bobbi Newman and Buffy J Hamilton - tweeters I know are big time in the Twitter world. They both have HUNDREDS of followers and follow many tweeters, so I was able to build a solid network of professionals. One thing that was slightly annoying was that I had to scroll through all of their followers and browse instead of searching for terms within the followers (like library). I could have used ctrl+F but didn't, so I did a lot of scrolling. It was interesting to build the network; I tried to find a variety of academic librarians, organizations like ACRL and ALA, and those interested in ed tech.
I think I'll continue to use Twitter, to get my name out there, and get information, but I might have to spend sometime setting up my HootSuite so I'm not feeling so overwhelmed. It makes me wonder though, do people always see everything on Twitter? Do people enjoy getting this much info all the time? There is always something to miss on Twitter, so how can I keep up with it all? Another question is, on Hoot Suite, is there a way to remove tweeters from the Home Feed once I put them into a list? That would be more helpful...
Again, interested to read other's Twitter reactions and maybe get some feedback on my experiences. I must say though, ultimately, this assignment is great. If you couldn't tell already, I'm really viewing this as a professional development opportunity - a chance to build a professional network AND get credit for it. Pretty awesome...
I joined Twitter circa 2009, started tweeting a bit about ed tech, and then stopped once my job didn't require me to read article after article after article on education. Before class on Monday, I rejoined the Twitter world and started following some professional library people but also news and tech sites, really trying to get a feel for Twitter before this week's assignment (rather, this week's professional development opportunity). I tried using TweetDeck and then found that HootSuite might be a better fit for making "streams" and fully utilizing Twitter. I actually tweeted and retweeted my five #si643 hash tags all week (instead of once an hour on Sunday) so I've been engaging with this social media tool now for a couple of weeks. I must say, I'm not sure how I feel about it. Its SO MUCH INFORMATION (talk about info overload, fellow si500-ers) so short it almost makes my head hurt. I also got the HootSuite app for my android phone, so I'm fully plugged in. It's been fun seeing what others have posted with the si643 hashtag and I must admit it is fun when someone starts following me and when I get a RT. I'm even thinking (kinda sorta not really) about changing my name on twitter because it has nothing to do with libraries. But, we'll wait and see cuz I'm getting a follower-base and don't want to lose that.
As for the part about starting to follow professional people based on the blogger's we followed followers (say that 10 times fast)... I couldn't find two of them on Twitter (Librarian is In, Information Wants to be free - though her blog is down right now and has been for the last 2 hours), one must approve my request (Not so Distant Future), and the other doesn't follow many professional folk (Gypsy Librarian). I searched the two I couldn't find by name, by blog name, and searched their blogs if I could. Not so Distant Future actually listed her witter name on her blog (what a concept! ;), and Gypsy Librarian took a minute to find because his twitter name is gyplib and doesn't come up when I searched Gypsy Librarian or his name. So, needless to say, I had to step outside of the box to find my network of 25 (I can't see Not so Distant Future's followers yet because she hadn't approved me). So, I defaulted to Bobbi Newman and Buffy J Hamilton - tweeters I know are big time in the Twitter world. They both have HUNDREDS of followers and follow many tweeters, so I was able to build a solid network of professionals. One thing that was slightly annoying was that I had to scroll through all of their followers and browse instead of searching for terms within the followers (like library). I could have used ctrl+F but didn't, so I did a lot of scrolling. It was interesting to build the network; I tried to find a variety of academic librarians, organizations like ACRL and ALA, and those interested in ed tech.
I think I'll continue to use Twitter, to get my name out there, and get information, but I might have to spend sometime setting up my HootSuite so I'm not feeling so overwhelmed. It makes me wonder though, do people always see everything on Twitter? Do people enjoy getting this much info all the time? There is always something to miss on Twitter, so how can I keep up with it all? Another question is, on Hoot Suite, is there a way to remove tweeters from the Home Feed once I put them into a list? That would be more helpful...
Again, interested to read other's Twitter reactions and maybe get some feedback on my experiences. I must say though, ultimately, this assignment is great. If you couldn't tell already, I'm really viewing this as a professional development opportunity - a chance to build a professional network AND get credit for it. Pretty awesome...
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