My husband drives a 2004 suburban with 250,000 miles and the drivers' side seat has busted at the seam - literally - so the stuffing is coming out. Sometimes I lose it and yell at my kids. Sometimes we have pizza 3 times in one week. Sometimes I wish I had a little more money and a little less weight. I don't like gardening. I hate to clean house. I am just a normal person. I put my pants on one leg at a time just like everyone else.
I think "Twitter Fame" has made some forget that we're all just PEOPLE. Hard working people looking to network with other hard working people. Some are single mothers. Some are struggling educators. Some are battling illness, marital issues, societal issues, financial issues... But at the end of the day ... we're just people.
I think we need to be careful of terms like "Twitter stars" and trying to achieve some magic number of Twitter followers. I think we need to ask ourselves why we joined Twitter to begin with... Was it for numbers or fame or was it for relationships and networking?
I was fortunate enough to finally meet some of my Twitter peeps last night at dinner here at ISTE and I was so pleased to find that they were as real in-person as they are on Twitter. I truly hope that if any of you ever meet me that you would find the same. I hope I don't lose sight of why I began using this tool... to build my PLN, to become a better educator, to better serve my teachers and their students and to network and grow and learn from all of you who have SO MUCH to offer ME!
Thank you all for being part of my PLN and I give you permission to SMACK ME if I ever start acting like a "Twitter celebrity." Because after all ... IT'S NOT REAL! :)
I think "Twitter Fame" has made some forget that we're all just PEOPLE. Hard working people looking to network with other hard working people. Some are single mothers. Some are struggling educators. Some are battling illness, marital issues, societal issues, financial issues... But at the end of the day ... we're just people.
I think we need to be careful of terms like "Twitter stars" and trying to achieve some magic number of Twitter followers. I think we need to ask ourselves why we joined Twitter to begin with... Was it for numbers or fame or was it for relationships and networking?
I was fortunate enough to finally meet some of my Twitter peeps last night at dinner here at ISTE and I was so pleased to find that they were as real in-person as they are on Twitter. I truly hope that if any of you ever meet me that you would find the same. I hope I don't lose sight of why I began using this tool... to build my PLN, to become a better educator, to better serve my teachers and their students and to network and grow and learn from all of you who have SO MUCH to offer ME!
Thank you all for being part of my PLN and I give you permission to SMACK ME if I ever start acting like a "Twitter celebrity." Because after all ... IT'S NOT REAL! :)
Love this!:)
ReplyDeleteThanks, Lisa!
DeleteSo true! Thank you for posting this and the pushback you give. I, too found that those whom I have admired are real just like me. How do you identify those who are "Twitter star" struck? What do you do to get them out of it?
ReplyDeleteThank you again for sharing your point of view.
Great questions, Rodney! Not sure how you "shake" those people back into "reality." I guess a lot of modeling. ?? If we all just act like normal people, then maybe the rest will follow. :) Luckily I think we all have good intentions so at least we're playing for the same team. :)
DeleteVery True -- thank you for sharing --
ReplyDeleteI shared some of same feelings here: http://projectsbyjen.com/blog/?p=2867
and feel free to smack me as well, if you see me getting close to twitter fame.
The irony of this all is that some of us have created monsters......
we have ohhhhed and ahhhhed and linked and quoted and elevated some of the network to levels which many of them feel awkward about being placed on......and in their humbleness, they have graciously and kindly told us and showed us -- through their humility that they are learners as well.
And then there are some, that we placed on pedestals and they got content and actually started to believe they were a bit above.
So, for me, I am going to work hard at not "gushing" as much but taking the time to get to know perhaps the quieter voices, often unheard and overlooked......
but be cautious in over promoting them......(grins)
Thanks for your post.
Enjoyed it very much
Jen
Oh, Jen! I agree 100% and loved your comments here. I also LOVED your blog post! Excellent thoughts and I think you're right - we should want to meet EVERYONE...not just our "Twitter celebrities." I met few of my actual Twitter peeps at ISTE but met a bunch of new people and was absolutely thrilled to expand my PLN in person and on-the-fly! Thanks for sharing - look forward to connecting more with you!
DeleteI just saw this....and loved you wrote what others have been thinking since twitter became the educator commune. I definitely appreciate my PLN and those who are able to contribute much (I am one of the "real" people you referred to...lol) to the stream of edtech consciousness, but I know that many 'new to twitter' educators feel intimidated or that they are trying to break into an exclusive clique....btw congratulations (GTA) I went to GTANY12 and my head is still swirling from all that I learned!
ReplyDeleteThank you for your thoughts! I hate the idea that Twitter is a "clique." It annoyed me in high school and I dislike it just as much as a professional. I think we just have to keep each other in check and keep inviting new people into our circles to grown our PLN and share away! Thanks for the congrats, too! Getting pretty nervous about leaving for Chicago...eeeeek! Have a wonderful weekend!
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