Initial+Identity+Reflections



Please post a reflection that a) provides a report of your current online identity (e.g., what is your current digital footprint?), and then b) provides some possible action steps you could take to revise and enhance your online professional identity. Consider some of the examples of teacher's sites we looked at in class.


 * Michael: A.) Currently, my online identity is very small. There are actually very few things I actually share with all the internet. In fact, one of the only things I share is my GarminConnect account (a website where you upload reports on your recent runs, bike trips, etc. captured by a Garmin GPS device) but that is limited to an username and not my exact name. B.) To enhance my online professional identity, I imagine I could start a separate "professional" Facebook page that could then link to the many online projects I have done for classes but are located under usernames. I could also start a blog about my experiences and insights into education. However, I have never had any luck keeping up with a journal and a blog seems like a journal in which I actually have to worry about my syntax and spelling (since it could possibility be seen by others) which does not sound too appealing to me.


 * Terry: My online professional identity is limited and as I ponder how to improve it I am struck by a certain reality. Less is more. In our physical world, I have learned that a bigger house means more to clean. More stuff means more to put away; more to store. Maintaining our ownership becomes burdensome, The online identity presents a similar dilemma. All of these accounts need maintenance. I have a facebook account, a twitter account, and a variety of other accounts including Ning, voicethread, Secondlife and Dipity. All require passwords and several require space maintenance, All clutter my brain. Additionally, all of the communication erodes my thinking which affects my writing. By bleeding my thoughts across cyberspace, I find that I have fewer legitimate original ideas left to write about. Updating constantly essentially robs me of time and space to ferment ideas before they are crafted into a full idea. At the moment rather than trying to spread my mind across so many internet sites. I am trying to master facebook and twitter. As I become better equipped to handle those venues, I plan to venture into Linkedin, which my friends in human resources say is essentially the only true 'professional identity.'


 * Shannon


 * Christina: Online there are many Christina Shupes. However, few of them actually refer to me. My facebook identity is hidden (because I changed my name) and I appeared in my college newpaper a few times (once quoted on dorm life, once listed as a member of Phi Betta Kappa). I have heard that it is very important for professionals to be on Linkedin and I plan on defintely putting myself on that site (including my resume, professional achievements, etc.) . I can also see the benefits of professional networking through Twitter and possibly other sites. However, I am still somewhat skeptical about online idenities and spending too much time either neglecting or nurturing them. I don't want to hinder my professional career through a lack of an online identity, but I also don't want to hinder my 3D real life by constantly being connected, updating, and searching. I plan on maintaining a professional identity (probably only through two or three sites) and a seperate social identity (probably only facebook and email).


 * Kyle: There is little online information about me--good or bad--but I think developing a good online identity depends on creating positive web content through twitter, linkedin, or other sites with professionally-oriented materials, and minimizing any negative aspects of my online identity. This means keeping my social life offline and being careful not to post anything that could damage my reputation or reflect poorly on me to the web. I know several people who like to blog about things not related to their job, and, to me, this seems like a bad idea. Although a rant about basketball or Jersey Shore may not directly apply to a lawyer, doctor, or teacher, posting anything that is critical or controversial could change somebody's opinion of you negatively. And if the content on the web that frames your identity is only a little bit of information, each piece of information becomes far more impactful. Instead, I think focusing on professional development and participating in legitimate, solid educational projects and sites online is the best way to develop an identity. With twitter and other grad school coursework online, I hope to build my own identity into something positive.