I was in two minds about applying for this badge as I know all too well that I cannot be called an online networker by any stretch of the imagination. I set up a Facebook page years ago and cannot even remember the last time I visited it - I think it was back in 2012 or so - and the same goes for the Twitter account which I set up two years ago and have used to send a tweet precisely once. I am somewhat more active on my LinkedIn page which I keep up to date as regards my professional development. I have even gone as far as liking a post or two (living on the edge, man!) but as for posting on it myself, forget it. It's not that I don't know how, it's just that I don't quite see the point.
Having said that, I am glad I went ahead with these tasks as they gave me much food for thought. Thing 10 has made me rethink my views on Twitter and Facebook and appreciate their value as institutional networking tools. It has also made me see the benefits these tools can give to individuals who want to raise their career profile and are prepared to work hard towards that goal. Even though at this stage of my own career I would be slow to use them personally, I would not dismiss the prospect of resorting to them at a later stage to promote my work, and Thing 10 has given me the know-how to do that.
Thing 11 inspired me to customize my LinkedIn profile address and update my professional profile to bring it more in line with my current work situation. I was also excited to learn about ORCID. Research and academic writing is something that appeals to me a great deal and is something that I would like to explore in more detail over the coming years. I was a bit disappointed that Thing 11 didn't go into more detail about ORCID but then again that's what Google is for!
Thing 12 provided a very useful introduction to collaborative tools and while some of these I am already familiar with, others - Trello and Slack in particular - were new to me. I was interested to read up on these and would certainly like to learn more and experiment with both tools.
Beyond the practical skills that Things 10-12 provided, they also made me think more seriously about my own professional footprint in the digital world. Googling myself in incognito mode was an eye-opener and made me realize that my professional online image is a bit patchy. Some aspects of what I do are perhaps over-represented while others are almost invisible even though in real life they all carry equal weight. Seeing this made me think more closely about my career and where I want it to take me in years to come. I realized that there are perhaps too many strands to what I do and that now might be the time to decide which of these strands to focus on and strengthen, and which of them to let go.
I still have a degree of antipathy towards social media and online networking tools, but there is no denying that when used right they present an excellent means of branding and promoting one's skills. I don't think I'll ever see the point of going all out and randomly operating every imaginable social media tool - Twitter, Snapchat, Instagram, Facebook and whatever new ones are sprouting up around us as we speak - but I do see the benefit of choosing one or two and using them systematically. It has also struck me that different networking tools serve different purposes. Twitter is great for networking ideas - spreading news, sharing information in real time, or finding the latest topics that are trending. Facebook is great for networking people, building social relationships, and for ongoing topics or conversations that are not dependent on time or timing. People who are more achievement-orientated and interested in a career change or very focused on promoting their professional skills are more likely to benefit from LinkedIn, while ORCID is the obvious choice for those interested in academic writing and research. In today's increasingly competitive world it is hard to make oneself heard. To me it would therefore make sense to pick the tool that best meets your own career goals and run with that rather than fire haphazardly on all cylinders in the hopes that somebody somewhere will hear you.
Image: HD Wallpapers
Thing 11 inspired me to customize my LinkedIn profile address and update my professional profile to bring it more in line with my current work situation. I was also excited to learn about ORCID. Research and academic writing is something that appeals to me a great deal and is something that I would like to explore in more detail over the coming years. I was a bit disappointed that Thing 11 didn't go into more detail about ORCID but then again that's what Google is for!
Thing 12 provided a very useful introduction to collaborative tools and while some of these I am already familiar with, others - Trello and Slack in particular - were new to me. I was interested to read up on these and would certainly like to learn more and experiment with both tools.
Beyond the practical skills that Things 10-12 provided, they also made me think more seriously about my own professional footprint in the digital world. Googling myself in incognito mode was an eye-opener and made me realize that my professional online image is a bit patchy. Some aspects of what I do are perhaps over-represented while others are almost invisible even though in real life they all carry equal weight. Seeing this made me think more closely about my career and where I want it to take me in years to come. I realized that there are perhaps too many strands to what I do and that now might be the time to decide which of these strands to focus on and strengthen, and which of them to let go.
I still have a degree of antipathy towards social media and online networking tools, but there is no denying that when used right they present an excellent means of branding and promoting one's skills. I don't think I'll ever see the point of going all out and randomly operating every imaginable social media tool - Twitter, Snapchat, Instagram, Facebook and whatever new ones are sprouting up around us as we speak - but I do see the benefit of choosing one or two and using them systematically. It has also struck me that different networking tools serve different purposes. Twitter is great for networking ideas - spreading news, sharing information in real time, or finding the latest topics that are trending. Facebook is great for networking people, building social relationships, and for ongoing topics or conversations that are not dependent on time or timing. People who are more achievement-orientated and interested in a career change or very focused on promoting their professional skills are more likely to benefit from LinkedIn, while ORCID is the obvious choice for those interested in academic writing and research. In today's increasingly competitive world it is hard to make oneself heard. To me it would therefore make sense to pick the tool that best meets your own career goals and run with that rather than fire haphazardly on all cylinders in the hopes that somebody somewhere will hear you.
Image: HD Wallpapers
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