looking forward

Well – I lasted longer than thought, and nowhere near as long as I would have liked: 1 week out of 4.

I am of course referring to the photo a day for one month theory: 1 month, 1 week (if I say 7 days, does sound longer?).

The problem started on the weekend: its was still hot and uncomfortable outside so we pretty much stayed in all weekend.  I could say that no opportunity arose for a photo, but the reality is that I did’nt even think about it on Saturday and having missed Saturday, didn’t bother on Sunday.

I’ve been thinking about this while I decide what to do – I’m not really that undisciplined and I could come up with any number of reasons for why I didn’t take the photos, but the simple reason was that I lost interest: not in the theory but in the practice. 

I may have rationalised why I was doing it – to increase my use of Flickr, but the reality was it was lazy blogging: a quick way to up my posts: a photo a day with a line or two of text and off I went; seven posts in a week.  Its a new record!

This wasn’t my motivation in the beginning and don’t even think it was my motivation in the middle, but by the end of the week, that was the only value I was seeing.  My heart wasn’t in the taking of the photos – it was an obligation, not a desire. 

So why how did it come to this?  Simple: I have no network on Flickr.  I know people who use it: some as an image repository, others as a networking tool, but I am not active in any networks utilisng Flickr.  This is what I need to do in order to more activly utilise Flickr – I need to be activily involved in utilising Flickr.

So, where to now?

Firstly, I’m going to move more of my images onto Flicker and get involved in the social side.  Thinking about the “30 Day Blog Challenge”  – this could be the sort of thing that I need to do – a number of challenges and activities to increase my productivity: “comment on a stranger’s photo”, I don’t know – something along those lines anyway. 

Let’s see how we go with this one

I spoke earlier about not being sure what my “voice” was on this blog.  I think I have come to a decision:  I’m letting go of all the pretence and seriousness.  I enjoyed the initial writing of this when I wasn’t trying to prove anything.  Instead I am going to try and find that light-hearted tone and just see where this takes me.  I was a lot happier with the results in the early stages (and a lot more productive too), and I am no expert, so why try to be?

This is not to say that I am going to try and make this into a comic blog (I know I’m not that funny), I’m just not going to take it all so seriously.  I want to have some fun.  Besides, I figure that this still fits the sub-title of this blog; “tentatve steps into web 2.0 and social networking”.  I’m still finding my way and I’m still experimenting.

…if life seems jolly rotten

there’s something you’ve forgotten

and that’s to laugh and smile and dance and sing”

Month Python’s “Bright Side of Life”

“Lead by example”.

 “Do as I say, not as I do”.

We’ve heard these quotes a thousand times and as much as we aspire to the former, how often do we fall into the category of the latter?

A large proportion of people that I have trained have commented on how terrified they were when they had to perform in the role for real: the gap between simulation and reality is vast. The advice given in each case is to remember that fear, not to fall victim to it, but to remember it.

One of the harshest accusations levelled against experienced staff and supervisors is that they cannot empathise with new staff: they have forgotten what new staff are going through. In essence, they have forgotten where they came from.

I make no secret of the fact that I am new to a lot of these ‘new’ social networking tools: up until a few months ago, I had only the vaguest idea of what web 2.0 referred to. I am in the same situation as those trainees: it’s a big world out there and I had no idea just how big it was.

In response to an earlier post, Sue made the comment that “the good aspect of extending ourselves is to remember how confront[ed] we feel when we do this – so that we can relate to how our learners might feel.“

Can we ask that our trainees/students utilise tools that we ourselves are too afraid or self-conscious to use and actively demonstrate?

Now that would be poor practice.

At least for the moment, its easy for me to remember where I came from: right here, right now, and the view is glorious.