Thing 5: Reflective practice

I’m not in the habit of reflecting so this may be one long ramble!

Thing 1

I enjoyed setting up a blog for Thing 1. I think it’ll be a really useful tool to help me keep track of what I’ve learned. In the past, I haven’t been good at keep track of training I’ve done, so this could be a good way of doing that. Plus I’ve just started blogging at work, so this will be good practice.

Thing 2

I’ve also enjoyed looking at other participant’s blogs, though it can get very distracting! Initially I was somewhat random when viewing blogs, so now I tend to check out updates posted on Twitter with the cpd23 hashtag. Although it’s time consuming, it’s a good way to keep up to date and find information you might not discover elsewhere, so I’m definitely going to keep it up

While I posted comments for Thing 2, I think I’m still very much at the lurking stage and need to participate more. I must get out of the mindset that I have nothing interesting to say or it’s been said already. It also makes me realise how far I have to go, as there are some very articulate, passionate people out there.

Thing 3

I’m still reluctant about the concept of a personal brand and have been happy to be inconspicuous, even though I realise that this isn’t really possible if you’re using social media. Plus I can see how having a consistent image could be useful for networking. So at some point I will get round to adding a photo to my blog and updating the one on Twitter  -  if I can find one I like that is!

Thing 4

My favourite thing so far has been Thing 4. However, I feel that even though I’ve been using Twitter for a while, again I need to engage more and jump into the conversation. 

Although I had previously used Google Reader, revisiting it for Thing 4 inspired me to try out alternatives. So I’ve been playing with Netvibes a bit too. I’m going to see what else is out there before I commit! When I have more time I need to look at my feeds and see what is relevant and what I can discard.

Finally, I haven’t given up playing with Pushnote just yet, despite my initial reservations.  Now that more people are using it, it may become more relevant. We’ll see…

Anyway, I’ve written more than I thought I would for this post, so maybe I can be reflective after all!

Thing 4: Current awareness - Twitter, RSS and Pushnote

Some thoughts on Twitter, Google Reader and Pushnote

Twitter

Initially I didn’t see the point of Twitter and wondered what all the fuss was about; why would I want to know what some celebrity had for breakfast? Nevertheless, to satisfy my curiosity I joined in February 2009.  Gradually I began to use it more, mostly lurking and not tweeting myself. Subsequently I decided to write about Web 2.0 for my Masters dissertation and set up a work Twitter as an experiment.  I wanted to gauge how we could use it to communicate with our students. It was slow to take off, but I think it’s been quite successful.  However most of the time I’m on my own Twitter @Chrissie72.  I like the idea of a ‘profersonal’ approach, so I don’t tend to separate work and non-work tweets. Thanks to this programme, I’m hoping to use it more as a professional tool to follow and communicate with other library folks. Don’t think that’ll stop me from tweeting rubbish though! 

Personally I love Twitter and find it addictive but manageable: I use lists and hashtags to cope with information overload. I think it helps me keep up to date and I feel that I’m more likely to find useful information via Twitter.

Google Reader

I’ve probably used Google Reader for a year or two. Again I started to use this while studying; the idea was that I could keep up to date with Library and work related stuff without having to look at loads of websites.  I was quite good at first and checked it every day, but I feel I’ve let it slip a bit now. Maybe I have too many feeds; I always think I can go back and look at the important stuff later, but never do. Plus I’m more likely to read something I’ve seen on Twitter than Google Reader; it just feels more immediate to me. Maybe I just haven’t worked out how to use it efficiently yet…

Pushnote

I’m not too impressed with Pushnote so far. I’ve had a bit of a play with it but not sure that I see the point of it. If anyone can convince me otherwise, feel free…

Thing 3: Consider your personal brand

I don’t think I’ve ever been very good at promoting myself, so the idea of having a brand seems a little uncomfortable to me.  Although I’ve used social media for a while, I don’t think I’ve really used it much for professional purposes. Maybe doing this programme will change that.

When I joined Twitter and started my blog, I didn’t consider the importance of a name or identity; my Twitter name is just a nickname, though my real name is on there too and my blog name is a case of ‘does what it says on the tin’.  I like the idea of a ‘profersonal’ approach as it seems much less stuffy and formal to me. I would say 99% of my tweets are inane drivel anyway, but I don’t think I’ve ever posted anything I wouldn’t want people to read.  Maybe I should be more cautious! To be honest I was more interested in look of my blog than the name; I spent a ridiculous amount of time playing with different back grounds. In an effort to more consistent I’ve used it as my Twitter background too. Maybe that’s my attempt to start a more professional online brand.

My Google search was predictable; I have a common name so the top two results were a couple of actresses. I gave up looking for any results relating to me after page 12.  However when I added ‘library’ to my search, my Twitter page was the top result! Not sure if that’s a good thing or bad thing… 

Perhaps I should give more thought to how I could improve my online brand, but it would be interesting to hear what other people have to say about that. Any thoughts please let me know.

Thing 2: Investigate some other blogs

Well, I’ve spent some time looking at a few cpd23 blogs. Although there seem to be a lot of experienced librarians and information professionals taking part, it’s encouraging to read posts from bloggers who, like me, are either newly qualified, or still learning when it comes to Web 2.0. This encouraged me to post some comments. Also, it’s interesting to see the range of blogs out there: from the more professional, serious ones to informal, random musings. I think my blog will probably fall into the latter category!  

I’m sure by the end of the week I’ll have checked out a lot more cpd23 blogs and have a lot more to say (I hope!).

Thing 1: Blogs and blogging

Although I’ve been interested in Web 2.0/social media for a while,  I’ve never really had anything to blog about before, so this is a good reason to start!  

I’ve worked as a Library Assistant at the Robinson Library, Newcastle University for 10 years. Last year I graduated from Northumbria University with an MA in Information and Library Management and I’ve recently begun a secondment as a Liaison Assistant.  Both of these things have inspired me to think more about my professional development. That's one of the reasons why I've decided to take part in cpd23.

Already, I’ve dabbled with Facebook and Twitter; I set up a Twitter page while I worked in Reader Services which is still going strong (have a look @nulibrs). So I’m hoping to build on what I already know and have a chance to play around with a few other things.

23 Things for Professional Development

I've just signed up for 23 Things for Professional Development, a free online programme open to all information professionals. The programme starts on 20 June and runs until early October 2011.  Having looked at the programme, I'm especially looking forward to the social media side of it. Hoping it will give me a chance to try new things!