The CPD23 – 23 Things for Professional Development – training course starts today! Thing Number 1 – blogs and blogging.
So why am I taking part in the CPD23 course? I’ve been writing this blog for a year or so now, but for most of that time I’ve been on maternity leave so I’ve not kept it particularly up-to-date! I need something to keep me motivated as I return to work, to keep me focused on my development rather than just being swamped by my daily tasks and ‘how do I do that again?’ moments.
Our industry is changing rapidly, and my role has changed dramatically over the past few years. Working in the media, we have always been fairly tech savvy, but developments like cloud computing, Twitter and Wikileaks have really altered how I do my job. Our department has an increasingly visible online presence, and I want to make sure we’re up to date with online resources, and that we’re getting the most out of them.
The size of my department has shrunk in recent years, and my network of fellow information professionals has shrunk with it. I’m hoping CPD23 will introduce me to a new network of info pros who are as excited as I am to be moving libraries into the digital world. Hello everyone!
I’m also starting out on my Chartership path, so CPD23 seems a great thing to add to my portfolio!
Librarian of tomorrow 
>The size of my department has shrunk in recent years, and my network of fellow >information professionals has shrunk with it
How do you handle the day-to-day shrinkage of your professional world? Do you think an on-line community is an adequate substitute, or are you trying to find real-world compensations as well? I’m undergoing the same processes (and it’s also one of the reasons I joined cpd23), and am still unsure of what it will take to compensate for the lack of work-place collaboration and inspiration.
That’s a really good question Ahava, you’ve pinpointed exactly what I’m missing at the moment! I think you can get a lot of support from the online community, especially with platforms like Twitter that allow you to bounce around ideas with info pros globally, people you’d never come across through work. But I’m definitely trying to make real-world connections too, by attending talks and networking events. There’s something about meeting people face to face that I don’t think can be replicated online.