Tuesday, July 2, 2013

Blogging: Professional vs. Personal (Should you mix the two?)

After reading through Week 3's articles I was comforted to know that I am not alone in my relative apprehension to blogging.  My wife will be the first one to tell you that I am an opinionated person and I don't hesitate to share my opinions with others, but there is something about writing them down.  Those words can really come back to haunt you.  So from a personal perspective, I like to keep my opinions in the oral realm and write down my deepest feelings and impressions in a journal that no one else can see.  Part of me feels like, "Who would want to read or know my thoughts and feelings anyway."  Blogging, tweeting, or facebooking about your every move and looking back to see if anyone has commented, "liked", or validated your decision to wear a blue shirt and black pants seems a little abnormal if not full on narcissistic.

Now from a professional perspective, I have found blogging to be helpful, constructive, and as several of the authors stated, anything that will encourage kids to write and share their work has to be good.  I still feel like a bit of a bulletin board guy as opposed to a blogger.  I think another that sets me apart from others but still keeps me in the realm of potential blogger is that while I don't just think of things that I would like to blog to the world, when someone throws a question my way and asks for my thoughts, I am much more inclined to reply.  As so while some criticize classroom discussion boards as ineffective and forced writing, I have found myself benefitting from the opportunity to write down my thoughts and receive feedback from classmates or instructors.  One idea that I think I have almost bought into is having my students create a writing/project blog where they will post their papers and projects for others to see.  I like the idea of them getting feedback and for their work to end up somewhere other than my recycling bin.

I will end where the articles began, make sure the blog you pass onto a future employer contains more professional blogging than personal.  It is almost never a good idea to show too many of your cards before you have even been hired.

1 comment:

  1. Jeremy, I can totally relate to your apprehension about blogging. I still struggle with writing blog posts, as I feel/felt the same way you do. Who wants to read what I am saying? It does feel narcissistic especially when blogging about personal matters.

    I don't mind commenting, but posting is difficult! I can see a great deal more use for professional blogging and for using this medium in education as well. Thank you for sharing your thoughts.

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