Creating your Circle of the Wise
"The next best thing to be wise oneself is to live in a circle of those who are." CS LewisI believe the great men and women of history would look upon us with envy as we now have the greatest opportunity in human history to immerse ourselves in a circle of the wise.
Using RSS and a free bloglines or netvibes account, you can now surround yourself with the leaders in your field and even become one yourself.
So, how do you select your circle of the wise? How do you keep from being overwhelmed? How do you fit it into your already overfull day?
How do I fit it in my day?
There is an old joke:
"How do you eat an elephant?
Answer: One bite at a time."
I read bloglines during the little "snippets" of time that are in my day. While I'm at break, an extra five minutes at the end of lunch. And if I'm too busy grading, I listen to podcasts through itunes on my computer. (Itunes is free and you don't need an iPod!)
When I'm having a tough day, I always find encouragement in my circle of the wise. Life is tough and it is great to know that I'm not in it alone.
How do you select your circle of the wise?
Character
It is very apparent that many will do anything in order to "make a buck." (a la Borat) You should be especially skeptical of just Googling and subscribing to those you find without knowing anything about them. When I began, I started with the one blogger I knew (David Warlick ) and then branched to those he knew (Will Richardson, Wes Fryer, Stephen Downes, Miguel Guhlin, Anne Davis), and then proceeded from there.
The list on the sidebar of most blogs called the "blogroll" (see mine) is a great place to find your circle of the wise. However, don't let this preclude you from finding new people to read that you've never heard of (I started blogging last December and someone had to start reading my stuff!) If you know a wise person who blogs, read their blog. They may be the world's next discovery!
Inspiration
Look for people who inspire you. Life is too tough to have real AND virtual people dragging you down.
"The people whom I have seen succeed best in life have always been cheerful and hopeful people who went about their business with a smile on their faces." Charles Kingsley
Never equate inspiration with fame (nor success for that matter.) I find inspiration in the lives of teachers who struggle with real problems but manage to teach and inspire anyway. They are my heroes.
Responsible
I look for people who understand the responsibility of blogging. They understand that "information doesn't travel in straight lines" and know that what they write today may be read by colleagues in five years. At that time, their colleagues will either view them as a pioneer or as a jerk. I prefer pioneers.
Conversationalists
I think most bloggers come in two flavors: egotists and conversationalists. The egotists just want to talk about themselves and somehow feel they have a "corner" on the market of knowledge. Conversationalists converse with those who post on their blogs and on the blogs of others than their own. Conversationalists are not stingy with their words but have joined the conversation about the topics they care about!Learners
I like to read people who are widely read and view new knowledge not as an opportunity to dig in and resist but to learn and grow. They are always teaching me something new that I didn't know and often pick up on the real stories that no one else is talking about. They are wise not because they know it all but because they know that they don't and have adopted a mindset of lifelong learning.Excellence
I read people who strive for excellence no matter their field. I believe it is important to read the blogs of excellent people in fields other than your own. I get many ideas for my classroom from business leaders and can understand societal trends by listening in on political or news blogs.
Excellence means that WHEN a person makes a mistake that they correct their mistake. It means that they sometimes change their minds with valid reasoning. These people have as a goal for their life to BE excellent. Not because anyone pays them but because it is what they believe in.
Searches
I had to add this on because you can do a search of Google News and subscribe to that search via your RSS reader. If you're doing a thesis or have a particular area of research or interest, this is a must do for you. Anywhere you see the little "RSS button" you can subscribe. Just be careful with doing it to many times or you could be discouraged by the thousands of results that turn up!
You become like your circle
There is a reason that we parents care so much about the friends our children choose -- we know that they become like those in their circle. This is the time of year we like to make changes. I believe that every professional should undertake the building of their own "circle of the wise" and work to fit it in your day.
Let me ask you this: if you were able to read the writings of Abraham Lincoln, or CS Lewis, or Ghandi, or Dale Carnegie on a daily basis, would you have done it? They are among you now. Find them and become transformed.
Comments
This has answered the one question I've had about blogging and that's what to do with all the RSS feeds? Your "one bite at a time" answer is perfect - to fit it in wherever and whenever during a normal busy schedule. I have to add that one has to really like this technology in order to "find time'. This seems to be the most common complaint among teachers with whom I work - there's no time. But there always seems to be time to walk across the way for the free goodies someone brought in, or to chat in the teacher's lounge. I'm not knocking this - being able to turn it off and just kick back during the day is equally important. But making time to read stuff about technology and education? That's a whole different thing, and it's really hard to persuade many of my colleagues that it's a worthwhile endeavor.
Posted by: Nicki | December 23, 2006 1:07 AM
What prevents my colleagues from getting into the blog world and the conversations around education is ACCESS. They don't have a system - yet- for being on-line at times and in ways convenient for them. They'll get there eventually. I can show them one at a time.
Posted by: Glen | December 26, 2006 4:30 PM
Nicki- As they see your life change and your excitement grow, they will become interested, just give it time.
Glen - You're right - I often say that "Web 2.0" and technology innovation spread like flu - one person at a time!
Posted by: Vicki Davis | December 27, 2006 3:16 PM
Vicki: As an independent consultant, I often find that reading blogs can simply be too addicting. It's so much fun to do and before you know it time can really pass by. I like the advice of limiting the number of feeds you subscribe to. By the way, if you get a chance check out my new on-line living textbook, at my website: http://www.pass-ed.com/education.html
Andy Pass
Andrew Pass
Posted by: Andrew Pass | December 29, 2006 3:05 PM
Inspiring post Vicky. I am further considering your questions in my blog
http://eltnotes.blogspot.com/2007/01/rss-digestion-too-much-to-read.html
Indeed something must be done or learnt about what to do with so much information through our RSS feeds -almost indigestion at times.
The blogosphere has given us unprecedented access to people's process of thinking. Trying to follow the process is always more uncertain, unsettling and messy. Now if we do not learn that, don't we run the risk of replicating closed circles online where a few are heard/read -just as a few get to be published today?
The comments in this thread point to the excuses some teachers find to avoid exploring online possibilities. Fear of the unknown is a more powerful constraint than lack of time. And teachers love to know things.
Teachers should love to learn things.
What we need is constant decision makers as to who to read, when and what for.
So in answer to your question Vicky, I am not creating circles. My aim is not to be like Stephen or Will or David -as much as I enjoy reading them. They are already taken so I rather be myself!
Reading the Wise is easy, sifting for great thoughts in a sea of publications is more like the kind of advanced literacy we will need.
Posted by: Claudia Ceraso | January 3, 2007 7:15 PM
Great points Claudia! Be yourself and write for yourself. Once you reflect and write what you like there will be others reading and agreeing or disagreeing with you. Either way is good with me because it is about the conversation!
Cheryl
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