Be You- Do You- and Activate You- My Thoughts on Desiree Alexander's Wakelet Keynote

 

Have you had a chance to try out www.wakelet.com yet?  If you haven't it is a really awesome tool for organizing information.  It can be used in so many ways.  You can create interactive collections of links, videos, notes, gifs, and so much more.  I have been using Wakelet for about a year now and I'm at a place where I really see why people get so excited about Wakelet.  Recently Wakelet hosted "Wakelet Live" on YouTube where educators and Wakelet ambassadors from around the globe shared their ideas and uses for Wakelet.  You can check out the playlist from the event here.  

During the event, I attended some exciting sessions including portfolios, thinking about what to keep and what to ditch after our pandemic experience and many new ways to utilize Wakelet.  I also attended Desiree Alexander's Keynote on "How to Break Barriers and Achieve Your Goals." Alexander's presentation was so just what I needed in the place where I am in life.  Are you feeling a little stuck?  Or maybe you are trying to decide what is next for you?  Today I'll share some of my thoughts on what Alexander had to say and reflect a little on how I can apply her tips in my own life. If you have a chance please be sure to go watch her video.  Maybe watch it twice, like I did to really absorb all the nuggets of inspiration she shares.  You can also follow her on Twitter @educatoralex

Alexander's approach to breaking barriers is to identify what is holding you back or "your mental mat" as she refers to it.  Then to "be you, do you and activate you."  Her first tip which I think is so important for all of us to be reminded of is not to compare ourselves with others.  Does this happen to you?  I know it does for me.  I see things on social media and I think why am I not doing what this other person is doing?  I see follow educators, librarians, tech coaches doing "all the things" and even though I'm seeing different people doing different elements of their jobs... it kind of all merges together for me and makes me feel like everyone else is doing a million amazing things and I'm behind.  Alexander reminds us in the session that what people portray on social media is usually the best of themselves and not the whole picture.  My take away is also that my mind is adding up everyone's accomplishments together and making it seem like everyone is doing all those things when the reality is very different.  

As I watched Alexander's video presentation, I started creating visual notes in Canva.  So many points were hitting home with me and I knew I wanted to come back to them later and reflect on them.  Alexander shared how important it is to really think about the company we keep.  As she future explained, some company we choose and others we have to be around... not everyone is for you.  I have a dear friend, Narda, who reminds me of this often.  It is something I need to hear.  I try to be a kind generous person to everyone I meet.  I genuinely want the best for others and I hope for them to excel at what they are doing.  I look at people with optimism and positivity, but not everyone else does this.  Not everyone is going to be happy for you or a positive part of your support system.  In fact, some will try to passive aggressively make you feel bad for any successes you achieve.  That is why it is so important to remember we may not have a choice always in who we have to be around, but we can be careful who we allow in our support circle to ensure that when you share successes those friends are "for you."

No matter where you are going in your career path, YOU need to be the one taking charge of your destination.  Alexander spoke quite a bit about not just waiting for someone to come offer you the opportunities.  We have the power to take that first step towards whatever it is we are passionate about doing.  I can research what skills I need to make any career goals I have more feasible and then I have to take those forward steps and start on the path.  Whether it is getting additional training, hands on experience, finding a mentor or going back to college, the only thing holding me back is myself.  This year, I really pushed myself to attend technology integration and blended learning training sessions.  I started investigating instructional technology coaching.  I got Google Trainer certified and approached my principal with a request to offer weekly technology integration training sessions.  I'm in a transition phase of my life.  I love what I do as a school librarian, but I am starting to dream of new ways to impact learners.

Alexander shared that in life we need to focus on our own finish line and not worry so much about what others are doing in their running lane.  It is a daily choice to focus on yourself and your race.  It is a choice to decide to be the best version of yourself you can be each new day.  We build ourselves up when we remember to reach down and help others who need assistance.  When we surround ourselves with positivity and positive influences we are encouraged and strengthened.  The most important thing we can do is to remember is that it is you vs you.  

In an upcoming blog posts, I'll share about portfolios and how Wakelet has helped kickstart my revamping of my professional portfolio.  Not sure where to get started with the Wakelet Live videos?  You can click on my recent blog post "Breaking Through Barriers: Jump on the Wakelet Wave" to see some sessions I highly recommend.