Using Your PLN for Growth: Describe how you actively use your PLN for professional growth and learning. What social media platforms have you found to be the most engaging, informative, and able to share resources, seek advice, and collaborate with peers?
As mentioned in my previous blog posts, I find most of my professional connections through a range of different social media networks, however, my top platform of choice would be Instagram. The reason I enjoy using Instagram the most largely has to do with how easy it is to connect with the people you want to connect with and the activity of its users. Compared to a more structure oriented platform like Instagram, most interactions are relatively tame and well paced, and I find the communities extremely friendly based on how you present yourself. It’s important to note that how you present yourself on Instagram contributes largely to how future members of your PLN may perceive you at first glance, so it’s important to keep up an organized feed and a presentable image.
Engaging with Your Community: Think about how you engage with your PLN community. How do you participate in discussions, offer support and feedback to peers, and share valuable content?
The easiest way to share valuable resources with my peers is simply sharing through group chats. Most social media platforms allow for users to save/favourite posts that they enjoy, which makes it convenient as each user can now specifically save and filter through the posts they find useful. With all of the features in modern social media platforms, sending a simple video of something you may want feedback on is as easy as two clicks! I must also acknowledge there are certainly other ways to participate in discussion. For example, the platform Discord made for the video gaming community, also is deemed useful by record producers due to easy file sharing and the extensive voice chat features, which allows for a streamlined collaborative experience.
Building a Supportive PLN: What steps have you taken or plan to take to build a supportive PLN? How do you identify and connect with individuals with similar professional interests and goals?
The best way to create a supportive PLN is to divert how you view relationships. Try to shift your perspective from creating traditional connections to creating friendships as this results in your relationships being more intimate and complex. Putting yourself out there in a vulnerable manner makes others feel inclined to reciprocate the same efforts! Getting to know various people on a deeper level also allows you to see what their professional goals and inspirations are, and from there you can determine if they are worthwhile people to continue to engage with in your PLN. The best way to judge if someone you want to connect with has similar interests as you is by doing a short dive on their content and what they post. See who they engage with and determine if the person(s) are worth the benefit of reaching out to for the benefit of your PLN.
Expanding Your PLN: What are your long-term goals for your PLN? What strategies will you take to expand your network to include international contacts or experts in specific fields?
In the long term, I want to create well connected networks with like minded individuals. With this network, I want to be able to find opportunities not only in a professional work setting, but also in a recreational personal manner. With social media, I find the international contacts are actually quite easy to obtain as they come naturally. Nowadays, location doesn’t play as big of a factor as it did many years ago. My first major record placement was with an artist from Atlanta, in the United States, and was produced with a co-producer from Germany! Now with modern technology, these interactions are quite seamless and I found them to be relatively easy to participate in despite the distance between my peers and I.
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