Thing 23

A Reflection of Hope by ecotist on Flickr
(made available under the Creative
 Commons Licence)

My "6 word story" to sum up how I feel about the CPD23 programme now that I have reached the last "Thing" is as follows;

Nervous, Challenging, Altered Self-perception,  New Horizons 

General Reflection

In terms of the "Things" that I have undertaken during this course I feel that I now have several new software "friends" including Evernote, Prezi, and Google Calendar, which I use on a daily basis. My professional networking is getting better especially in the use of the online resources that I have been introduced to during CDP23. I even feel that I am now less nervous about blogging than when I started on "Thing 1" all those weeks ago.

Mind the gaps!

I am not sure that I can see the relevance of creating something as formal as a Personal Development Plan (PDP) for managing my career development at the moment. However I have identified  the following gaps that I would like to address:

1. I would like to have the opportunity to develop my social working skills since I feel that this is an area that is underdevelopment generally within my workplace.
2. I also have my annual review coming  up at work and plan to ask about attending more conferences / external meetings in order to give my personal profile a boost, although I don't feel confident enough the present at them, well not just yet anyway.

Cap on books by MomMaven on Flickr (made
 available under the Creative Commons licence)

So what next?

It's back to studying for me.I have deceived to embark on a Masters Research degree next year. (I am so committed that last week I even did a 10 hour round-trip by train to attend Aberystwyth University's postgraduate open day.

I feel that this is the right time to undertake a new course of study as opportunities to develop my career seem to be a bit limited at the moment especially with the number of job being cut both within my own organisation as well as in the library sector generally.

Thing 22

Your library needs you by Phil Bradley
on Flickr (made available under the
Creative Commons licence)

On reflection I feel that volunteering has been and still is a very important part of my life, both professionally and socially (see my earlier post for Thing 21).  

Before I managed to secure a job as a library assistant I undertook a period of voluntary work in the library of a local primary school in order to gain some experience of working in a library setting.

Later when looking to move forward in my career I volunteered to help with numerous public library events and activities around the district, which included anything from serving the refreshments at author talks to helping to coordinate all-day youth workshops and reading fairs. These opportunities enabled me to work alongside librarians and other professional working the public library sector. and on reflection I believe that they allowed me to gain invaluable experience in how to run successful events. 

Subsequently I was extremely lucky in that I managed to secure paid temporary employment as an assistant librarian whilst still studying for my LIS degree. Fortunately this temporary post turned into something more permanent but I am convinced that this due in a big way to my flexibility and eagerness to learn, skills which I have developed as part of my volunteering.

I believe that volunteering is a good thing and under the right circumstances can have great benefits for both the volunteer and the employer. However it is important to remember that "volunteer" is not just another word for free labour. Within the library sector I believe there is a place for both the volunteer and professional librarian but it is important to remember that these two distinct roles should not be confused when evaluating and restructuring service delivery.

Thing 21

Odd One Out by c.a.muller on Flickr (made
 available under the Creative Commons licence)

Identifying your strengths; capitalising on your interests

Coming from an IT background into librarianship I believe that my computing skills are not only one of my strengths but something in my current job role that I find really interesting and am always keen to develop. 

I really enjoy working with others both colleagues and users and like my friend  Boundtounravel  I also enjoy a bit of detective work and get a lot of personal satisfaction out of helping students to search for information (although sometimes I think that a crystal ball might be useful). I like challenges and being given the opportunity to try something new, but have to confess that I find repetitive tasks boring (I suspect that this is because I find them lacking in challenge).

Outside of work reading is one of my biggest interests (surprise, surprise) and socialising with friends.I also spend a lot of time in theatres, both amateur and professional. Not only as an audience member but also as a Front of House volunteer, which links back to my "working with others"  interest mentioned above.

Applying for a job 

I have to confess that I am really bad at keeping my CV current, probably because I was required to complete an application form for my last three jobs. However I do agree that with the comment made in the post for this "Thing" that "a CV is a living thing" and I really like the idea of using Evernote to keep details of the courses and conferences that  I have attended, even if only to transfer the information into an application form!!

Interview tips 

Having read a number of the other posts for this "Thing" I feel that all the tips that I could offer from the perspective of an interviewee have already stated.

So having recently been "on the other side of the interview table" so to speak I thought that it might be a useful to offer a couple of tips from the perspective of the interviewer:

1. Do your homework. Find out as much as you can about your prospective employer. As well as looking at organisational websites remember to check out local newspapers (most now have an online archive)  for any information that could be useful in the interview. If possible why not even visit the organisation in advance to get a realistic feel for the workplace. Remember that everyone is on their best behaviour during interviews, not just the interviewee!
2. Remember for which job you are being interviewed, especially if you have a number of applications on the go at the same time. This may sound a bit stupid but I recently interviewed a candidate who spent the entire interview taking about how much she wanted to work in an HE institution, which is fine expect that the interview was for a job in an FE college!

Thong 20

Unfortunately the Library Routes Project website still seems to be down (other blog posts that I have read noted that the site was off-line back in October), so rather than waiting I’ve decided to blog about my library roots / routes here instead.

 

Know Where You Are Going! by sirwiseowl
on Flickr (made available under the Creative
Commons Licence)

I believe that my library roots go way back as I have been an avid reader since childhood. I always enjoyed my Saturday morning visits to the local public library with my mum who even let me use two of her library tickets as children were only issued with two (this was back in the days of Browne issue you understand). From these early experiences I harboured dreams of working in a library one someday.

An unsuccessful attempt at work experience in a local branch library whilst doing my A levels left me completely despondent. (I found that Browne issue, microfiche and a visual impairment were not a good mix.) 

So with all hopes of becoming a librarian dashed it was off to a job in the Civil Service fro yours truly for the next ten years.

2001- 2004

After working in IT as a Systems Analyst for twelve years, a job that I loved, I was faced with redundancy and no real idea of what I wanted to do next, except the certainty that I didn’t want to continue working in the IT sector anymore.

Now with the mortgage paid off by the redundancy money and realising that I had a range of transferable skills perhaps finally this dream could become a reality.

I applied for a job as a Library Assistant in one of the local public libraries and although unsuccessful on that occasion (due to my lack of library experience) the interviewer gave me some invaluable feedback. Acting upon the feedback I decided to undertake voluntary work in our local Scope charity shop and the local theatre in order to further develop my cash handling and customer service skills. This in turn led to my successfully obtaining a post as a Library Assistant.

At my first probationary review I was advised by my librarian that I would need to obtain professional qualifications if I wanted to progress in my library career. It was with her encouragement I undertook a two-year HNC, Library & Information Science course via distance learning with Edinburgh’s Telford College. Achieving this qualification helped me to get onto the next rung of the ladder as a Senior Library Assistant and also provided a gentle way back into formal learning after a twenty year gap!

2005 - 2011

But my dream had always been to be a librarian and so I applied to Aberystwyth University to study their BSc Econ Library and Information Studies course as it was offered via distance learning (a format that I had found with the HNC course really worked for me). 

It took six years to complete this course but I finally graduated in 2011 and during this time I had also realised my dream, having secured a job in 2008 as a subject librarian in an FE college library where I am still working today.

2012

This year, as part of my continuing professional development, I have completed the new City and Guilds Level 3 Certificate in Learning Support course offered by my employers. I felt that this course was particularly relevant since my subject areas involve a higher-than-average level of learner support.  

The Future

When reflecting on the route I wish to follow sadly chartership is not a realistic option for me at the moment as it is not recognised by my current employers as relevant to my role. Therefore should I decide to go down this route at a later date it is likely to be without any workplace support.

However having said after I graduated last year that I would never study again, after doing the C&G  course this year the study bug has bitten me again. But this time since having a Master’s is not a requirement of my job I have decided to undertake the course of study for myself and am currently in the process of investigating suitable MSc research courses that I can undertake via distance learning.

Thing 19

Mother and calf by David W. Siu on Flickr
 (available under the Creative Commons Licence)

I am so sorry that in struggling to catch up I have even managed to be late for the catch-up "Thing"!

I found Jo Wood's guest blog about fitting professional development into your life really interesting. I especially liked  her comments about not trying to do everything and that it is OK to say "no" to people sometimes. Rather than being forced into doing something that takes up valuable time and doesn't really interest  me.

I am determined to attend the new Umbrella conference next July as Jo's comments about attending one really good conference rather than several average ones really hit home. Up until now it seemed that I was  only allowed attend anything that was a) local and b) free. Perhaps  I try to include it in my next development review as Jo suggested.

When reflecting on CPD23 on a personal basis I have to confess that being able to create my personal brand in Thing 3 was really exciting and is something that I want to develop.

Whereas I found that having the opportunity in Thing 17 to develop my Prezi skills has been the most useful to-date in terms of my current work role.  

Thing 18

Apples by soundslogical on Flickr (available
under the Creative Commons Licence).

A hectic few weeks at work followed by a well- deserved holiday (not far from where they make lovely Herefordshire cider)   has meant that I have fallen behind in doing the "Things". 

So I am determined to try and complete at least two this week, starting with Thing 18, which is all about screen capture and podcasting...

Jing

I really like the idea of screen capture tools and at work we already use a similar screen capture product from Adobe called Captivate to produce short video tutorials for the students as part of our induction package. I've had a play around with Jing but have not produced anything worth sharing and am not sure if I can justify using it at the moment. 

 

Audacity for Prodcasting

I've used Audacity in the past for converting / editing music files but have never gone down the podcasting route. I'm not sure that it is really me and since there is currently no requirement to produce podcasts in my workplace I don't feel that it would be worth spending time investigating this "Thing" further.

Thing 17

Recursive Stained Glass by gadl on Flickr
(available for use under the Creative
Commons Licence)

 Like most people who work as part of a team I am happy to share resources but I have to confess that the overuse of Powerpoint presentations within the FE college where I work drives me crazy! 

Therefore being a bit short of time this week (the start of the new academic year is always stressful) I decided to concentrate on Prezi as I am already familiar with Slideshare.

When one of my ex-colleagues (Bound to unravel) decided to use Prezi last year in order to create a new presentation for our library induction I was really impressed and wanted to learn more. But as it always the case working in libraries there was never enough time to explore Prezi properly.

 Undertaking this CPD23 course has finally given me the opportunity to learn more about Prezi and its varied uses. In particular I found the tips and examples in Ned Potter’s “The ultimate guide to Prezi“ really useful.

As a result when it came to organising this year’s induction I have found that doing this “Thing” has enabled me to update the original presentations with confidence, even so far as to try out a few ideas of my own!

Thing 16

I’ve been thinking long and hard about advocacy and speaking up for the library and information services profession  for this “Thing” which is why it has taken me so long to post something!



Librarian by Day By MrSchuReads
on Flickr (available for use under
 the Creative Commons Licence).

I just want to say that I am really passionate about being a librarian (since it has taken long enough for me to get to become one). Yet despite not being an activist (or a superhero for that matter) I sincerely hope that through my daily interactions with FE students and staff I am seen by them as a good advocate for the service in which I work as well as for libraries in general.

I strongly believe that through my actions I demonstrate the value and effectiveness of libraries and the services they provide in order to meet the ever-vhanging needs of my organisation and its various stakeholders. 

However, despite the fact that I can appreciate for many people it is all about the high-profile protests I feel that when considering the role of advocacy within the library and information services profession surely it is just as important to consider the little things that we do to advocate our services as much as the grand gestures!

Thing 15

Aberystywth beach by izzie_whizzie on Flickr
 (available for use  under the Creative Commons
Licence).

Sadly I don’t feel that I have much to contribute to this “Thing” about attending, presenting at and organising seminars, conferences and other events.

All my experiences of attending conferences to date have been limited to a few locally-organised mash-ups and the Librarycamp un-conference, held in Leeds back in May.

When reflecting on the Librarycamp event I felt that the informality worked really well, especially when we adjourned to the local park for the afternoon sessions, although as a newbie it did seem a bit chaotic at the start when everyone was pitching their ideas.

I think that it would be really interesting to attend one of the big conferences such as CILIP’s Umbrella 2013 Conference & Exhibition due to take place at the University of in Manchester next July. However I think that I would like to just be a delegate as I am not sure that I am brave enough yet to put myself forward as a speaker!

Still in the spirit of “Carpe Diem” I can at least send off the registration of interest form for Umbrella 2013...

Thing 14

Just like the author of the "Thing" I too did all the referencing and bibliography construction for my dissertation last year without the aid of technology, despite being offered the use of Endnote by my university.



Reference Book Collection by Jordanhill 
 School D&T Dept on Flickr
(available for use under the Creative
 Commons Licence).



I agree with my friend Katie's comment in her recent blogpost  that  being "organised and methodical" was the key to successful referencing and that "the approach you take to referencing is very much a personal decision".

I didn't have enough  time to try out all three suggested products so decided to try Thing 14b - Mendeley, as from the introductory video it seemed quite straightforward to install and use. Once the software had been installed I did have a go at importing several files but found that I spent more time and effort correcting the citation entries, than it would have taken me to do construct the references manually. Therefore I am still not convinced if I will continue to use this software.

I am afraid that the same can also be said for my working environment as the FE students that I work only require a very basic knowledge of referencing and so programs such as Menderley could be considered as overkil for theml.
.

 

Thing 13

This “Thing” has been all about collaboration in a virtual context which I think is really cool and hope that in the future I will get the opportunity to with other people outside of my immediate working environment.



In A Whisper by /\lex on Flickr
(available for use under the Creative
 Commons Licence).

However I don’t think on a personal level  that I can justify getting to grips with either Google Docs or Dropbox at the moment. This is because  I have found that Evernote (which I encountered in Thing 9, and really love) satisfies my current needs in respect of online document organisation and storage.

At work we already have a virtual drive on which all documents created by the tram are stored thereby negating the need to use products such as Google Docs and Dropbox. However I can see that it would be useful for people to use when working on collaborative projects especially where they don’t have access to any common storage or file-sharing facility.

Whereas I can see that wikis have more potential (and I really enjoyed the "Wikis in plain English" video that Jennifer reccomended). For example my library service has recently undergone a major staffing restructure which has not only resulted in the loss of several very experienced (and knowledgeable)  members  of staff and the remaining staff being relocated across college (thereby making them geographically-remote from each other) but will also involve several new people joining the team, Therefore I feel that using wikis  as a means to share service knowledge and general information would be something that I would like to pursue actively.

Thing 12

When reflecting on how I put the social into my social media use I have to confess that I haven’t really got to grips with participating actively in social media as part of my professional role.



Fireworks #1 by Camera Slayer on Flickr
(available for use under the
Creative Commons Licence).

I still consider myself as more of a lurker and prefer to use aggregators and email to consolidate Linkedin, blog and listserv postings, otherwise I have found that the whole process quickly  becomes overwhelming. 

On a more positive note, I have ventured outside of the library sector, finding some useful resources within the teaching sector.

Return to Earlier Things

This week I have been refeclting on Thing 6  Online Networks and Thing 7: Real-life Networks and how over time the two can overlap.

Hugging Salt Shakers by HarlanH on Flickr
 (available for use under the Creative
Commons Liecence)

Last week I attended my first Yorkshire & Humber Region Heritage Users Group (Y&H HUG) meeting which was hsted by the College of Building in Leeds. Up until this point my networking with other users of ISOxford's Heritage Library Management System had been only via the online support forum so it was really intersting to put faces to names.

I found the meeting (and the informal lunch aftwerwards) extremely interesting and came away with several tips and suggestions on how our system could be improved. 

Unfortunately the Y&H HUG only meet a couple of times during the year but at least attend this latest meeting has given me the opportunity to broaden my network of contacts.

Thing 11

When thinking about mentors and being mentored  for this latest “Thing” I do agree with Meg Westbury’s comment that the mentoring experiences can be “immensely rewarding and beneficial”.

Julia's dad's Blue Moon Rose by avlxyz
 oin Flickr (available for use  under
 the Creative Commons Liecence).  

Although I have not expereinced any form of formal mentoring during the course of my working life I have been fortunate enough to encounter a number of people who have acted as my  informal mentors. These people not only  shared their professional knowledge and expertise with me but also offeed their unconditional support and  encouragement, as well as the odd “kick up the backside”!

Like several others, whose blog postings on this subject I have read recently, I am not sure if I am missing out by not having someone who I can call my mentor. Also I feel that as I am still fairly new to the profession, if I did have a mentor would I be able to make good use of their time and have anything worth sharing professionally?

However given the current situation in UK libraries many of the people who I would seriously consider as potential mentor material are leaving the sector en masse (either through voluntary redundancy or early retirement).

Is it possible to self-mentor I wonder…

Thing 10

This week’s thing is all about considering my route into librarianship in terms of the training and qualifications that I have undertaken over the years.

Long Road in Montana By Stuck in Customs
 in Flickr (available for use under the
Creative Commons Liecence).   

However after reconsidering this “Thing” in light of the points made by Sheila Webber in her recent “CPD in Your Later Career” blogpost I find myself in a very strange position. I may be an “Older Thing” in terms of age, but as a recent graduate I very much consider myself a "New Thing" in terms of my professional development as a librarian.

2001- 2004

After working in IT as a Systems Analyst for twelve years, a job that I loved, I was faced with redundancy and no real idea of what I wanted to do next, except the certainty that I didn’t want to continue working in IT anymore.

An avid reader since childhood I’d always enjoyed my Saturday morning visits to the public library and harboured dreams of working in one someday.  Now with the mortgage paid off by the redundancy money and realising that I had a range of transferable skills perhaps finally this dream could become a reality.

I applied for a job as a Library Assistant in one of the local public libraries and although unsuccessful on that occasion (due to my lack of library experience) the interviewer gave me some invaluable feedback. Which led me to undertake voluntary work in our local Scope charity shop and as a theatre steward in order to further develop my cash handling and customer service skills. Thereby resulting in success in my next Library Assistant job application.

At my first probationary review I was advised by my librarian that I would need to obtain professional qualifications if I wanted to progress in my library career. It was with her encouragement I undertook a two-year HNC, Library & Information Science course via distance learning with Edinburgh’s Telford College. Achieving this qualification helped me to get onto the next rung of the ladder as a Senior Library Assistant and also provided a gentle way back into formal learning after a twenty year gap!

2005 - 2011.

But my dream had always been to be a librarian and so I applied to Aberystwyth University to study their BSc Econ Library and Information Studies course as it was offered via distance learning (a format that I had found with the HNC course really worked for me). 

It took six years to complete this course but I finally graduated in 2011 and during this time I had also realised my dream, having secured a job in 2008 as a subject librarian in an FE college library where I am still working today.

 

2012.

This year, as part of my continuing professional development, I have completed the new City and Guilds Level 3 Certificate in Learning Support course offered by my employers. I felt that this course was particularly relevant since my subject areas involve a higher-than-average level of learner support.

 

So what’s next?

Sadly Chartership is not really on the cards for me at the moment as it is not recognised by my current employers as relevant to my role. Therefore if I decode to go down this route at a later date  it is likely to be without any workplace support.

However having said after I graduated last year that I would never study again, after doing the C&G  course this year the study bug has bitten me again. But this time since having a Master’s is not a requirement of my job I have decided to undertake the course of study for myself and am currently in the process of investigating suitable MSc research courses that I can undertake via distance learning.

Thing 9

Evernote

Crikey!  This Evernote “Thing“ sure did put up a bit of a fight. It has taken me over two weeks  to finally get the software to work properly on both my tablet and PC (good job there was a catch-up week).

The elephant gets a bit of a black mark from me  in terms of accessibility as it seems that Evernote has real problems with any screen resolution lower than 1024 x 768 pixels.  (Bcause of my eyesght I need to have my PC set to 800 v 600 pixels). This restriction caused me a lot of frustration during the set-up process as not all of the options were always visible. In the end I had to increase the resolution in order to complete the set-up process and then reset it back to my normal setting.

However now that I have not only managed to set up the software on all my devices but to also get Evernote to sync I am completely hooked!

For example In preparation for embarking on a master’s course I had started to research various topics and download bits of information but was finding it difficult to cross-reference the files between the different topics as well as remember on which device they were located (I ended up using a USB Flash drive). Evernote is proving to be really useful in both respects as it combines complete accessibility from any device with the ability to use bespoke tags to organise the information by topic. Fanatsic!

Thing 8



Confused Rope by Turbo.Beagle
on Flickr  (available for use under
 the Creative Commons Licence).



This latest Thing is all about Google Calendar and finally I have come to something that I not only know about but can honestly say that I use every day!

Google calendar saved my sanity in that my husband  (the complete star that he is in all other ways) is utterly hopeless when it comes to organising his life! 

After the failure of numerous paper diaries and PDA devices to keep him organised over the years (he never had the thing with him when needing to write down/check appointments) I had almost given up hope when quite by chance my husband decided to buy an android phone.

However the real “light bulb moment” came when I discovered that Google Calendar would work with android technology and since my husband’s new phone package included free internet access he now always had the phone with him. Simples!

So now rather than having to nag him repeatedly about forthcoming events all I have to do is add them to the appropriate calendar (we both have Google Calendars) and because I have shared access to both calendars they are always in sync and can be accessed from any pc or mobile device. Result!

Now all I have to do is to find a way to convince my line manager that we need to connect the LMS calendar to a Google Calendar…. 

Thing 7

When reflecting on my experiences with professional organisations for this Thing I have to confess that up to date my involvement with them in real life has been embarrassingly limited.



Chartered Instituation of Library
 and Information Professionals



I joined Cilip as a student member a couple of months before I started my degree course bacj in 2005. I found the Update and Gazette publications very informative about the topics that I studied. I also found the online resources particularly useful when searching for journal articles, which otherwise would have cost me lots of money to purchase / photocopy. 

In terms of real-life interaction I did attend one of the local branch meetings a few years ago but to be honest I felt a bit excluded and suspect that unlike the student representative present I wasn’t considered a “proper” student as I was studying by distance learning (while working as an assistant in a local public library). Perhaps now that I have qualified and got a job as a librarian I ought to be brave and try attending again.



International Federation of
Library Associations and Institutions



I am a great fan of the IFLA especially since it has sections that cover my particular areas of professional interest including  Library Services to People with Special Needs (Section 9) and Libraries Serving Persons with Print Disabilities (Section 31) . Hopefully I might get the chance to attend of of their conferences oe day they always seem to be in really exciting locations!

Now for some exiciting news (well I think it is anyway). Quite by chance I had the opprotunity to represent my library at the latest JISC Excellence in Learning Resources forum this week. Over the past four years I have attended a couple of these forums but not regularly enough to reallyy get to know anyone. 

Although quite confident as a person, because of my sight problems I often find it difficult to approach people face-to-face and start a conversation as I can’t always be sure that they are even looking at me! I also have problems with recognising people that I have already met across a crowded room (even my husband) and on occasions have been accused later of ignoring them.

However this time I was determined to take on board some of Bethan’s suggestions and try network more effectively.  I decided that I would aim to speak with at least three people that I didn’t know already during the course of the day and where possible would use existing contacts as a means to make new ones.

This sounded simple in theory but in reality did prove a bit more difficult. Some of the people that I already knew on the delegates list didn’t attend and because we were all issued with name badges no one introduced themselves!

Not to be deterred I ended up asking people for their names and explained about my sight problem (as I though that peering closely at their chests might seem a tad over-familiar on first acquaintance). Everyone I spoke to was really friendly and by the end of the day I had made four new contacts. Result!. 

And finally...

When thinking about why I am not a member of more LIS professional organisations I think that my answer has to be the cost. As a student the cost of being a member of Cilip was very reasonable at £38 and joining ASLIB was free. However because I am lucky enough to be in employment I now face fees of £194 and £220 respectively, and to be honest I am not sure that I can justify paying such large amounts.

Perhaps more realistic banding is the answer? .

Thing 6



Spider Web by Randradas in Flickr (available
for use under the Creative Commons Licence).

I found it took longer to finish  this Thing than expected as I got completely sidetracked by the really cool videos  on http://commoncraft.com/.

This time I only needed to set up an account on LinkedIn as I already have active accounts on Facebook and LISNPN (which I set up when doing "Thing 3"). I find that I use my Facebook account to keep in touch with family and friends who live away although I have to confess that I tend to lurk more that I post!

Since the concept of branding is still very fresh in my mind I have decided to continue to use the Facebook account for social interactions and as a part of my personal online presence. Whereas I plan to use my new LinkedIn and LISNPN accounts to promote my professional online presence. Which means that on reflection that I probably do agree with Reid Hoffman (founder of LinkedIn) that "Facebook is the backyard BBQ; LinkedIn is the office".

Finally regarding the Cilip communities, despite already having an active username and password (I used this site a lot to search for journal articles when studying) I still found it a bit cumbersome to navigate. However I am still convinced that there is some good stuff to discover and so feel that I might return to explore this online network in a bit more detail during catch-up week.

Thing 5



Lonely by the Water by Matthileo in Flickr
 (available for use under
the Creative Commons Licence)

When reflecting on why I chose to do the CPD23 course this year my main reason was sheer frustration at the fact that I had stagnated in terms of career development  since graduating last summer, mainly due to the acute lack of professional development opportunities in my workplace.

Things 1 and 2 were all about creating and exploring blogs. I have been following the blogs of several library professionals for a few years since I found them extremely useful when studying for my degree. However I had never considered writing my own blog as I felt that I hadn’t got anything interesting to say! I hope that working through the remaining “Things” will alter this self- perception and give me the confidence to continue blogging. I also hope that this experience will broaden my horizons in respect of reading, and commenting on, other blogs that I follow.

I found Thing 3 really interesting as it related to personal branding. As advised I spend many hours pondering on what exactly I wanted my branding to say about me, both in terms of wording and imagery used. I must confess that I am really pleased with the outcome and feel that it was well worth the time spent considering all aspects of my branding. I have now updated all my online presences with my new imagery and bio in order to establish consistency.   

Despite already having a Twitter account (albeit an inactive one) and knowing about RSS feeds I still found Thing 4 about current awareness really interesting. I used this activity as an opportunity to do an overhaul of my RSS feeds list (most of which I had set up while studying) and to add some of the recommended ones.  However as mentioned in my post about Thing 4 although I did register with Storify and found browsing others’ stories interesting I didn’t really get on with creating my own story (due to browser inconsistencies). 

As well as doing CDP23 I also resolved to try and attend more library-related events and activities, even if it meant attending in my own time and at my own expense! 

http://www.librarycamp.co.uk/

To this end I recently participated in Library Camp Leeds. I have to confess that that I did feel a bit nervous before the event as this was the first time I had participated in this more informal type of conference.

However I came away at the end of a really interesting day with a much more positive view of what this style of conference is all about and having met some really interesting and friendly people. I felt that as well as providing the usual opportunities to network and share ideas this event gave me a much better perspective on the current state of the library and information sector as a whole.  It also linked in nicely with CPD23 as I came away with a new list of interesting people to follow on Twitter! 

Thing 4.

I have had a Twitter account for some while now but am ashamed to admit that I had never sent a tweet before CPD23. I think the main reason for my reluctance to be more active was that I always felt Twitter was more of a social calendar-type thing and also that I  wasn't getting the full picture when trying to follow a conversation. (A bit like when you arrive late at a party where everyone is already mid-conversation). 

Still having worked through this part of Thing 4 I now know better and having signed up to follow several of the people recommended in the post for thing 4. In this way I am hopeful that I will be able to decipher the mystery of hashtags!

I have been into RSS feeds for some while mainly through Google Reader. I use them to check up on things both in a professional and personal sense and find them easier to read as well as more informative as there is no character limit (perhaps that’s why I failed with Twitter in the past).  

My particular favourites at the moment are Phil Bradley's Weblog and The Wikiman which I discovered  while working through Thing 2.

Regarding Storify I really struggled with it and couldn’t create a story as my browser wasn’t supported although I did take the guided tour and looked at several of the recommended stories. I also looked at several stories relating to the RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2012 which were really good with lots of video clips.

But to be honest I am not sure how (or even if) I will ever find a reason to use it again. Though to be fair I can see that it has its uses and I might suggest to some of the tutors that they try using it with their students when evidencing their research for assignments.

By the way I also really like the current awareness tool Pulse News and find it really simple to use. I would recommend it to anyone using a tablet.

Thing 3

"Consider your personal brand" brand" Jo's posting read for Thing 3 and to be fair she did warn that it might take some time to achieve.
How right she was!

It's been over a week later since I started this Thing and I am still not sure that I have got the presentation right in terms of font size, colour scheme etc. for all my different presences.

One thing I found particularly difficult when designing my "brand" was finding suitable images, whilst managing to avoid the copyright pitfalls. In the end, as I don't have any artistic talent at all, I nagged my husband to draw my "bear with a book" and background images for me.

Regarding the "Googling" activity I tried using my name and "library" which as well as the expected links to Facebook and Twitter did throw up a couple of surprises. One being a document about an MLA-sponsored Sills for Life project that I worked on years ago and had thought was long gone (I even downloaded a copy to keep, how sad is that!)

When reflecting on the idea of a personal brand I have to confess that although I think a lot about how I present myself to others in terms of face-to-face, telephone and email encounters I hadn't really thought about having an online presence until now. This is something that I feel will require further consideration, especially in terms of maintaining consistency across different online platforms as Jo advised.

Thing 2

Having just read some of the other blogs linked to cpd23 I have gleamed two important pieces of information.

1. Everyone else but me seems to be an early-bird!

and

2. I am going to have to get a lot better at deciphering the word verification thingy as it took me longer to post the comments than it took to write them!  

Thing 1

I decided to take part in this course primarily because I graduated from university last July with a shiny new degree and high hopes that my role as an academic librarian would provide plenty of opportunities for continuing professional development. Unfortunately nearly a year later I don’t feel that those hopes have been realized (and the degree isn't quite so shiny).

Therefore rather than waiting for someone else to come up with opportunities for skills development I decided that it was high time that I put my librarian skills to good use and so started looking for myself. This was when I came across the cpd23.course.

Despite feeling a bit nervous about some of the "things" (and a complete newbie to blogging)  I am always up for a challenge and hopeful that this course will provide me with opportunities to develop existing skills as well as acquire some new ones.

The start of the journey...

Have just created this blog in order that I can register for the new cpd23 course, which starts on Monday.