Wednesday, April 7, 2010

Embarking on a New Journey

Starting a blog is no small feat. The title, the colors, the purpose all must be thought through, at least for me. Thanks to the brainstorming efforts by a couple of my friends on Twitter (@amandacdykes and @j_allen), I was able to come up with a title and a picture. However, the bigger question was "What is the purpose?"

First, starting a blog is about being a model for my students. I will not ask them to do something that I am not doing. It is a learning curve for me so I can better inform those learning from me. My friend and colleague (@bethstill) has encouraged me and has been a huge help in my getting started.

Second, this blog is a way to reflect on all of the wonderful things I have learned from so many inspiring people. Be it education or life in general, I get to come in contact with people every day who offer me new insight. This blog will allow me the space to reflect on what they have taught me.

Last, this blog is about making new footprints. I love the question posed by Randy Pausch in his book The Last Lecture: "What wisdom would we impart to the world if we knew it was our last chance? If we had to vanish tomorrow, what would we want as our legacy?" As teachers, parents, friends, etc... that question is often hard to answer. The footprints we make will be our legacy for others to learn from us.

One anonymous quote that I found says this: "The footprints you leave behind will influence others. There is no person who at some time, somewhere, somehow, does not lead another."

Thanks to everyone who has influenced me; I hope to inspire others in return!

8 comments:

  1. You might want to look at Daniel Pink--new book Drive is very cool ..you seem to be leaning on making a difference in your quotes and while you admire them its all about the fact you will make a difference! Good luck with your blog...your two mentors are part of my PLN...You are DESTINED for greatness!

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  2. I am so glad you finally decided to start a blog. Just remember this is your space. You get to decide what you share here and it is up to you how often you write. The only rule with blogging is that there are no rules.

    Congratulations and enjoy! I am looking forward to learning and sharing with you on here.

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  3. @Cindy, Thanks for the kind words! I have heard many great things about Daniel Pink...I will definitely look into getting the book!

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  4. Brenda,

    Congrats, and I wish you the best of luck in writing your blog. I echo the sentiments of Beth, and add one more layer to it. The best part about blogging is that it is all about what YOU want to talk about and how YOU want to frame ideas. A lot of bloggers are concerned with "hits" and all that sorts of stuff so they narrow their ideas to a scope so small that they might not be able to explode with bigger issues. I urge you: be serendipitous and almost helter skelter if you want to be. Again, I wish you the best of luck and look forward to sharing thoughts and ideas as you embark on your new educational journey.

    Congrats!

    Aaron

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  5. Aaron,
    I'll tell you I am really shy about asking people to read and think about my thoughts! (Just ask Beth)! :-) I hope this will bring me out of my shell a little! Thank you so much for your support and kind words!
    Brenda

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  6. There is a really good group of blog posts that Steve Dembo did last summer called 30 days to a better blogger. http://www.teach42.com/tag/30d2bbb/ I'd play around for a bit, but be sure to check it out later. I learned a lot.

    Good luck! Can't wait to read more!

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  7. Josh,
    Thank you for the link. I will definitely look at it.
    Hope to add more substance to posts in the future!!! :-)
    Thanks for your brainstorming help too. I love the mountains and autumn is my favorite season. So the picture has those things and a reflection in the pond! :-)
    Brenda

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