Only just  two weeks ago I barely existed online, my digital footprint being the size of a mouse, the only evidence of myself to be found was a Facebook profile, that even I couldn’t find by searching, and accounts on Reddit, Twitch and YouTube, all three of which aren’t under my real name.

This would explain why, when I completed the connect skills quiz I received a “bold beginner” rating, after all I hadn’t truly connected with people online before, only on Facebook did I do so and there it was a somewhat passive experience, I never did the adding and I never posted a thing either.

Even on Reddit, Twitch and YouTube, I’m more of an observer, never engaging with the people who share my interests but simply lurking in the forums, enjoying the memes and discussions had by everyone without contributing.

I never saw the point in interacting on social media, after all, I didn’t really care about the lives of people who were maybe acquaintances years ago, all of my friends are people I see or speak to almost daily and so I didn’t have a need to use social media to catch up with them.

It was in doing my LinkedIn that I came to a realization about online connecting, its not just about keeping up with random people, or about video game and movie discussions, online connection is actually another skill set which can be used to help one professionally.

LinkedIn is a fantastic platform, it acts as a living resume, one that can be updated and grown as you move forward in life, whether that be changing your area of study or job, or even just acquiring a new skill.

The ease in which you can connect to others in your chosen field was a revelation, I spent a small amount of time finding my classmate, some of whom LinkedIn found for me, but I was also able to find my friends from outside of university, even finding potential future employers such as principles and organisations dedicated to sending teachers overseas to teach, was simple.

The site even used my Facebook profiles’ friends to seek out further connections, thus a social media platform I once found to be pointless, had now offered me a plethora of people to expand my network.

It was when I found myself perusing my friends accounts that I noticed a disadvantage I currently have, where I barely existed in the online realms, he had created an entire website dedicated to his works, not only this but he had also created a YouTube channel to further display his animations, and even a Twitter which he frequently posts to.

He was easy to find because he’d made an impact online, and everything that came up in the initial search was devoted to animation, any employer who would find him on LinkedIn, would undoubtedly  see that animation was something he had a passion for.

This got me to thinking about what someone would find about me online, it was honestly literally nothing, where he had created an impact crater the size of a grenade explosion, mine was barely more then the footprint of a field mouse.

So where to start?

Well a good place to start would be this blog, while I may not actually link this to any future professional space, this could be used as a sort of training ground, someplace I can practice writing about topics in regards to my current goal of becoming a teacher.

I’m even considering creating an account on Twitter simply to start forming a more public identity, while I may not focus too much on educational things with this account, I think it would do me well to start forming at least a horseshoe sized imprint on the digital space.