Yesterday, I had the privilege of heading back to my alma mater to present to some of the SAGrads about social media and personal/professional branding.
Now, I don’t really consider myself an “expert” in social media or even a leader in the #SAField. I’m still relatively new and just coming into my own as a #SAPro, chilling over here in Spartan territory doing my thing. And I tend to just dive in and see what works and what doesn’t for me but if I can provide some insights or resources from my experiences to help another learn then awesome 🙂
I suppose you could equate me to wholeheartedly embracing Erik Qualman’s Rule of “Fail Fast, Fail Forward, Fail Better”.
Now, it was awesome to share and present to the group. As it was really my first non-conference presentation/workshop, I learned a lot about my presentation style and what I need to work on, and hopefully they learned a lot about social media and establishing a purposeful digital footprint.
But prepping for the presentation was also exciting, because while I was doing so, I was reading through blogs, articles and books galore. It was great having an excuse to HAVE to find time to re-read some of my favorites. As I read through the plethora of material, it was interesting to see that most of the literature and information was specifically targeted for and about our students. Now, absolutely, all the information is translatable to impart to staff. But it seems that there’s an assumption that, as #SAPros/#SAGrads, etc. we know how to establish purposeful footprints and how to mange ourselves, our brands, etc. on social media platforms, etc.
However, let me refer you back to NASPA 2015 and YikYak-Gate. ‘Nuff said.
So, it was great to put together something that could help our future colleagues really understand, how to not only establish ones digital presence, but how to make your presence authentically you and set them on a path of what I guess could be best described as “digital self-authorship” as professionals (of course I had to throw in a little Baxter-Magolda self-authorship).
Now, this is just from my own experience, understandings and interpretations of resources out in the world and how I’ve approached my self-authorship as an individual/professional and my digital stamp. But, check it out, let me know what you think! 🙂
Until next time!
Peace, Love and Pandas!
Hello World, Its Me, Brian 
This is GREAT!!!!!