Attending the Northern Voice Conference this year was, as usual, a thought provoking, learning experience – though not entirely what I’d expected…
This is the third year I’ve attended NV. The first time, I had barely started blogging. It was still very much an experiment – I was talking out loud as I searched my soul and navel-gazed my way through over-thinking, self-doubt, “ah-ha” moments and many churning emotions. No one actually read my blog except for a few people “out there” – so it was a “safe” way to discuss what I normally kept hidden. I even considered NOT putting my blog URL on my registration. I attended most of the “101” sessions and ate lunch on my own – after all, I didn’t have a “network” yet!
The second time I attended NV was dramatically different. I had discovered Twitter about half way between those two events. Although I’d signed up for a Twitter account earlier, I didn’t “get it” the first time I tried it. (a common experience, I suspect!) But then Dave Truss talked to me about the learning and conversations he was getting from Twitter – I was intrigued… He also gave me some hints for getting a network started. Connected me with some people in the educational and edtech communities. As I jumped in, asking questions and participating in conversations, I was hooked! And at NV09, I had a different experience as a result. Now I knew some people – particularly @injenuity, who introduced me to others at the conference.
As a result, my second time at Northern Voice was much more about the people and the connections. Here was a group of people that were also passionate about more than just the technology – who were using blogs and twitter and social media to connect, to engage, to learn, to self reflect and ask for feedback. The conversations blew my mind – finally I had found a whole bunch of people (not just one at a time) with whom I could talk for hours and never stop learning! Even the idle chit chat had depth. At lunch, a conversation started about “imposter syndrome” – with such honesty, these amazing people talked about their fears. Wow! I’m not alone… The power of finding like-minded learners was intoxicating for me – and with chaos reigning supreme in my personal life, I stopped blogging and became obsessed with Twitter and the flow of conversations and connections that I lacked in my day to day reality.
Neither Twitter nor blogging are the “obsessions” that they once were for me – I’ve found that I use them as I need. They are only part of my toolkit now. Learning in my online spaces, where I felt safe to expose my thoughts and fears to this caring community, opened doors of possibility for my “real world” life. I’m figuring out how to trust myself and surround myself with trusted friends who are also striving for authenticity and joy. How amazing it has been to see how we lift each other up, inspiring each other to be our best selves, lending a hand when another “falls”. My mix of online/offline community is now a “place” where I am confident both supporting others AND being supported – often providing timely observations that allow me to grow and step out of old, well-worn patterns.
So this third Northern Voice Conference was a natural extension – an exciting time to reconnect with familiar friends, to meet some new and to match faces to Twitter IDs (like figuring out that @clintlalonde isn’t actually a 10yo with glasses anymore…) It was also a much larger group than it was last year – I believe the conference had twice the attendees as previous years.
So why was I surprised? It started in Chris Lott, Brian Lamb and Alan Levine’s session about whether #blogsaredead or #blogsarealive. As the discussion milled about, there was talk of monetization and commercialization of blogs and how that moved away from blog as art or self reflective practice. I commented that we didn’t have to follow any trends – that we could just continue to do what is “right”… And another person in the audience immediately responded, his exact words forgotten, but the jist of it was about how judgmental it is to assume what is “right”…
That started me thinking. What a valid point – I was, indeed, judging others who monetize their blogs as not being “true” to the “real” benefit of blogging. I was judging them by my values – not allowing that there are multiple reasons to blog, all just as valid as my own. Who was I to decide how a tool “should” be used or not?
With the growing use of social media, its uses are also expanding. Perhaps my discomfort with it becoming “mainstream” is really that it’s no longer within my “community” – and it’s no longer just being used in ways that align with my beliefs and values.
Oh, tolerance is easy to talk about, isn’t it? It’s much more challenging to actually “be” tolerant when someone with significantly different beliefs is challenging your view of the world.
Then came the discussion on Twitter last night about children at the conference, how much (or little) they disrupt things and people speaking up to point out that they have absolutely no desire to have children near them. It was hard for me at first to believe that a human being could actually feel that way! And yet, I quickly recognized that was silly of me – of course there are people with all sorts of perspectives and values! I can’t imagine feeling that way, but who am I to judge whether that is a valid experience for them or not?
It finally struck me that these thoughts and feelings are simply the symptoms of two different communities, with differing motivations/values, coming together in one space and time. I’m having a moment of “culture shock”…
In her discussion of culture shock, Janet M. Bennett compares culture shock to the tensions and anxieties we face whenever change threatens the stability of our lives. Her main argument is that culture shock is only a subcategory of transition shock.
She defines transition shock as: a state of loss and disorientation precipitated by a change in one’s familiar environment that requires adjustment.
Hmmm… Requires adjustment…
This rings true to me right now. Northern Voice is in a state of transition right now – and rightly so! It has grown. The use of social media has expanded and matured. This is an opportunity for us to recognize the unique communities that come together around the table we call “social media” and practice tolerance for each other.
And that, in my opinion, must include respect for each others’ perspectives and needs. I want the child friendly aspects to continue – that parents can come, participate in the conference, and arrange for shared childcare when needed. I also want opportunities for adult learning and networking, without having to be conscious of whether conversation is child appropriate or not.
I’d like to see Northern Voice 2011 be conscious of how we provide both. Sessions can be defined, by the presenters, as child friendly or not – and advertise them that way. That way presenters know what to expect and attendees have the opportunity to select sessions that suit their preferences.
I also think it may be time for a “community social media” conference. Perhaps a spin-off of Northern Voice – built on many of the fantastic ideas and structures that make NV so unique! But I want to create something with a focus on families, co-learning, student involvement, teaching parents about social media, creative sessions, doing social good and building community! I wouldn’t want it to be INSTEAD of Northern Voice – but IN ADDITION to…
I’ve been chewing on this idea for a while now. Perhaps it’s time to just do it…
Really enjoyed reading this very thoughtful post. I also the blogging / social media community has grown and diversified. I guess part of what I am asking myself is if we are really a community anymore. I tend to think yes and love the idea that we an all gather under the big “Northern Voice” tent. What you describe as a “community social media” conference has many of the same features, in my mind, as Northern Voice – but, I think it could be a valuable addition indeed. I like the idea of Northern Voice being a “hub” type conference where we can all meet, get to know each other, and exchange ideas.
Just some more mental meanderings.
First, great post. Second, in response to Arjun’s question, in the way I understand communities and networks, NV is a network that now contains many communities, some of which rub up against each other comfortably in a moment of quasi-community and some that ruffle each others’ feathers. Ruffling is important – diversity causes us to rethink and revisit our positions and perspectives (or at its best, I hope it does.) Our task is to learn from our disagreements with civility rather than arrogance. But I guess we screw up pretty often.
Finally, I just connected you from NV10 back to NV9, which I had not done because my brain is what my brain is. YES, the imposter conversation!!! AHHHHHH
Waving from South Africa/on the road
Nancy
I’ve been trying to figure out some of the feedback to Northern Voice that I’ve been seeing, and had begun to grope towards a position that you articulate much better in this post.
Oddly enough, the growth of the conference may have prompted a transition where the diversity of people who happen to be using social media becomes more evident. I think that may be reflected in some new expectations. For instance, I read one post where a panelist complained that the session moderators (myself, and another organizer) had been too passive, and had not taken an active role in shaping and running the session. That was a first for me, in the past I’ve gotten used to quite self-directed presenters, who more than anything wanted me to keep the intros short so I don’t waste their time allotment.
Arjun’s and Nancy’s follow-ups are worth thinking about as well… NV as a network of diverse and at times divergent communities… civility and and some humility are so important.