As I’ve openly admitted in the past, I’ve had a hard time using my PLN. I created a Twitter to be my PLN, and have tried several times to get it going without success.
I never remember to use it, and I just can’t seem to get in the habit of consistently tweeting or commenting on other’s tweets. I also had a hard time seeing how it could be used effectively for my purpose- it seemed more obvious to me how others could use it for art or graphic design. I didn’t see how it could be used for more of an “academic” standpoint. While I don’t doubt the academia of the arts, a PLN seemed harder to apply to my program, something I have found to be more writing and researched based. However, my perspective changed significantly after my professor, Dr. Cheney, tweeted a post that I had written.
Robin DeRosa, who is also a part of the IDS team, retweeted this tweet- and to my surprise, so did a few others.
I was able to reply and interact with someone on Twitter, and better yet share another one of my posts that was relevant to the conversation.
It was such a great feeling that other people were reading, relating to and commenting about what I had written. That post got over 40 views, when my posts usually get a handful from professors and classmates. The interaction really made me feel like I had something important to say, and that my work was important and relevant- which I discovered PLNs are great for. Furthermore, I have now seen how Robin and Matt’s twitters over have important conversations about academia and written articles. Academic Twitter is apparently alive and well, and with this positive reinforcement I can see myself using my PLN more than I have in the past.
After realizing how useful and vast academic Twitter can be, I am going to continue to share what I have written with as many people as possible. I think that I will also be able to find a use for it in graduate school, as I have now found many accounts that tweet about their work, experience and anecdotes as a grad student. I hope to not only share my life as a scholar, but also as a real person who struggles, fails and perseveres. I think it’s really important for people to see how imperfect the road to success can be. Many prominent and respected professionals have failed miserably in their fields before succeeding, or have overcome significant adversities before achieving success, and it’s important to acknowledge these hardships to give hope and strength to other students. It is so easy to give up when you think that everyone around you has always had it together or when you think that no one has ever been in the same position that you are now. I hope to be not only a resource for knowledge in my field, but an inspiration for those on the same journey.
This is a great reflection. PLNs are difficult because it can be so hard to figure out how to get any traction, but if you approach it thoughtfully, eventually connections start to grow, as you've seen. You created a great ePort post, so had something to send attention to ... and you ended up getting attention from people like Kate Bowles who are leaders in their field. Now you have the opportunity to keep experimenting, and keep growing your network. Nice job!