Tuesday, October 7, 2008

How I Became Fabulous


Many years ago I would list "searching the internet" as one of my hobbies. Yes, with weird stares and questions about what I could possibly be looking for. I just liked the thrill of the hunt. You never know what you might find out there.

Well, as the internet has grown and I found myself busy with a job and a family, that hobby was lost until I met a good friend who helped me learn new and interesting ways to find those neat websites. (Thanks Jason)

Now that I'm a technology facilitator and hang out with a "bunch of nerds" (they're aware I call them that and I think they're actually appreciative). They always ask "how do you know all this-you're fabulous!". I may have embellished the last two words on that quote, but I'm pretty sure they were thinking it! :)

Anyway, truth is, I'm not really that fantastic, I just have a few great tools to help me get there. I figured I'd take a moment to share those few things which are so helpful to me.

1. I share. This is probably my biggest resource. You may be thinking that sharing is me giving ideas away, so how on earth can it be a resource? Truth is, once you start sharing, a wonderful thing happens and people start giving back to you! It works in many aspects of life, but I find it works really well on the internet.

2. I use twitter. (www.twitter.com) Twitter is a microblogging site that allows you to share what you're doing with the world (or at least the part of the world that wants to follow you). I have found many great people in technology to follow on twitter and we all share great ideas with each other about new technologies that are available. Any time a great new web2.0 tool is discovered, someone is talking about it on twitter.

3. I follow blogs on google reader. (www.google.com/reader) Google reader is a tool that helps you put all your blogs in one place so they're easier to read. Anytime I go to a technology conference and hear a great speaker, I look for their blog and add it to my google reader. Anytime they do an update, it appears in my google reader so I don't miss a thing!

I use a few other things as well, but these are my three main resources. I don't want a lot of stuff clogging up my brain or my computer, so I think it is best to keep it simple. It's hard to keep track of several different tools, so just pick a couple that you like the best and stick with those.

I ask anyone else that reads this post to please comment on any other tools you are using to make you fabulous!

Disclaimer

The opinions expressed herein are my own personal opinions and do not represent anyone else's view in any way, including those of my employer.
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