Having just read Darren Rouse's about setting goals for one's blog, here are my goals. But before I set my goals, I had to decide whether I wanted to continue with this blog.
I started this blog earlier in the year because it was a required activity for a course I was involved with. Maintaining this blog has been a lot more time consuming and distracting than I ever thought it would be because blogging is not just about writing one's own blog but also reading other people's blogs and communicating with them. This connecting with other people is time consuming but that is where the learning is for me. My blog is base camp and from base camp I wonder off into the wilds and up mountains. It is in my travels that I meet people and in just the few months I have been 'traveling' I have grown and learnt a tremendous amount about e-learning and social networking, all of which I can apply to my personal research as well as my teaching. So I guess my first goal is to continue with this blog, acknowledging that it is now a vital part of my personal and professional learning and development.
My second broad goal is to try to get midwives interested in blogging and social networking, using this blog as a tool and/or meeting point. My first thought for doing this is to get more material published in traditional midwifery journals about blogging etc as a way of getting midwives to think about social networking. I did write an article for the New Zealand College of Midwives' Journal earlier this year but had no feedback about it, so I have no idea if midwives read it or what they thought about it. But I still think that publishing articles about social networking is a good strategy because there is little written about it in midwifery or nursing press.
The other thing I want to do this year is organize some more online midwifery meetings and link them back to this blog. What I was thinking was to ask midwives to write guest posts as suggested by Problogger and then do follow up meetings using Elluminate. The snag to this is how I can encourage people to see the value of putting their time into this project, especially as there will be no financial renumeration.
So, I would be very interested to hear any ideas about how I can use this blog to spread the word about social networking, especially to midwives and health professionals. Are you a midwife or non-midwife who would be interested in writing a guest post or being involved in an online meeting? If you read this blog, what subjects/topics would you like to see explored or discussed?
Image: 'rete3 (il calcio a san paolo, roma)' cristiano corsini www.flickr.com/photos/33399095@N00/327931770
6 comments:
Hello Sarah. I have had a refreshing read of a couple of your postings and eventually there will be a comment on my blog at http://blogs.educationau.edu.au/ksmith/
I like your attempts to clarify what your blog is about and who it is for. I agree that blog postings often help you clarify your ideas and do some self-learning as much as giving pearls of wisom to others
Kerrie
Thank you very much for your kind words, Kerrie. I don't feel I have any thing much to say that hasn't already been said by many who are much wiser than I. But as you have said, blogging for me is as much about my own processing as anything else. So why not do it in a closed paper journal rather than here for all to see? I guess its about making connections to people who think the same or challenge me to see things in a different light - I wouldn't get that in a closed, private journal.
Hello Sarah,
Interesting blogg Sarah, my background is very much like yours. I was wondering have you had much success in creating an online meeting with midwives?
the other question I have is? have you had much traffic through your blogg? I am in the process of setting up my blogg so I have added you to my favourites to keep in contact and watch your progress. It will be good to bounce information around. Ciao Pauline
Hello Pauline, great to hear from you. What's the address for your blog?
The answer to your first question is that I attempted two online meetings last year but they were not very successful - if you look at my previous posts, you'll see why I think that is.
As I have said in this post, I want to set something regular up this year and see how we go - probably make it into a research project. So if you have any ideas about how I can do that, please let me know.
As for the second question, I do not have a large readership, about 40-50 visits per day. By doing more networking and being strategic about my posts, I hope to get a bigger readership. But to be honest, it is unlikely I will ever have a large readership because my blog 'cliche' is small ie midwifery and education/professional development. What format do you see your blog taking - personal or professional?
Hi Sarah,
My blog is now up and running, as for being personal or professional lets wait and see who payes me a visit. I am still very new at this and learning my way around my blog. I welcome any tips thanks.
Ciao Pauline
infomidwife.blogspot.com
Great to see you have your blog up and running - will love to keep in touch and see how you get on. I am a newbie myself so am still learning. cheers Sarah
Post a Comment