Meetings

This afternoon I was lucky enough to have the opportunity to meet with Simon Brown for coffee and a chat. I first made contact with Simon through Twitter actually, I can't remember who started following who (although I strongly suspect it was me as I continue to try and build a larger network) but I do remember two significant moments:

The first was him introducing me to friendfeed...and me audibly groaning at the idea of yet _another_ tool to keep track of (at the same time as I registered of course).

And the second was when Sue Waters introduced me to targeted tweets by teasing Simon about neglecting twitter for various other micro blogging services.

Making the initial contact with Simon online has been really important in my online expansion (for want of a better term). Through him I've become a member of the OZ/NZ Educators group, eagerly look forward to the weekly flash meeting and am loving the chance to get to know some many more wonderful educators!

So, to stop the rambling - it was great to meet face to face, chat and share stories and I can't wait to get the chance to do so again!

Doors of Opportunity

Last week I participated in my first ever OZ/NZ Educators net meeting. I was a bit timid at first - honestly, it seems strange, but I think I am more video/audio shy online than I am in person - but towards the end I said hello and started to get more comfortable. This week I actually found myself looking forward to the meeting, just being able to listen and share what other people are doing is awesome.

It was a relatively small meeting tonight only between 6 and 8 members logged in, but still it was well worth taking the time out from Australian Idol to log in. Especially given that within the first 15 minutes I'd connected with someone working on a project a colleague wants to do. Straight away there's a support person I can offer and the possibility of a global connection for them both.

Since getting involved in building a Professional Network online through Ning, Twitter, Skype, etc I've learnt a lot of things - new tools, new ideas, solutions to problems, new systems, and the list goes on. But the most powerful thing I've learnt - the smallest connection can open up whole new worlds of opportunity.

Every person I meet online, every tool I find, there seems to be at least ten more attached to it. It's totally mind blowing...and totally awesome as a teacher!