Blog Like a Pirate #BlogLAP

I Did It!

I did it!  And it is scary and exciting at the same time!  Today I made a decision to chart a course of sorts…to start blogging…for real!  Blogging has been on mind a lot lately. Everything I read and every other tweet on Twitter contains a link to a blog post.  Have you noticed that there have been dozens of blogs popping up all over the internet lately?  Have we have reached a tipping point?  It has been incredible to read blog posts from so many innovative and awesome educators.  Thank you for sharing your successes, struggles and wonderings with us.

Reading and following blogs is a daily habit and Ilearn-people, quite frequently, think that I should blog.  Truth is, I start to blog and never stick with it.  I have a trail of well intentioned one-post blogs gathering dust on defunct sites in various places.  I have pondered the question of why don’t I blog and carry a healthy dose of guilt for not taking the risk of sharing my reflections with others.

But today is the day!  What has changed for me?  To be honest, I am not sure!  Maybe it has been the free time I have had at home during my summer vacation?  Maybe I finally feel confident enough to take a risk?  Maybe I want to be a better leader by modelling good practice.  Maybe the time is just right to blog Like a Pirate!

Blogging…When the Time is Right

Blogging will happen when the time is right.  That is what I have said in the past; putting it off until the time is right. Well, I have decided that today is the time.  A few reasons why:

  • I read great blogs online that deal with innovation, leadership, reflection, student voice, mindset, etc…
  • I follow great educators on Twitter who inspire, encourage and model leadership and innovation in so many ways
  • I love being part of Twitter and I want to share and grow as an educational leader

My Past Reflections about Blogging

Excuses and Reasons

Below are some of the excuses and reasons why I thought I didn’t have time to blog.  They have included:

  • no time to blog, no time in my schedule
  • takes too much time to record my thoughts
  • nothing to blog about
  • who wants to read what I write about
  • my ideas around education are not new and exciting
  • I am not innovative like those other educators!
  • risk of sharing
  • what will others think
  • I have nothing worth sharing

#BlogLAP is Born

As I was reading my feed on Twitter, I got thinking about hashtags and what makes a hashtag popular.  I was exploring popular educational and leadership hashtags and wanted to see if I could create a hashtag that would resonate with me.  I have been so excited and drawn to the whole Like a Pirate philosophy that has been driven by Dave and Shelley Burgess and their amazing books, by amazing educators, that they have published through their company.  The hashtag was so obvious!  My goal of starting to blog, coupled with the PIRATE principles was exactly what I was looking for!  And when I searched for #BlogLAP on Twitter, the hashtag didn’t exist.  What a treasure!  I was so excited and wanted to put it out to my PLN, today.  That is how #BlogLAP was born.

Sticking With It

This is the part of blogging that I struggle with.  But this is the part of my practice that I would like to improve and develop into habit.  To begin charting my course I will:

  • read and support others who blog; those who are out there taking risks to share their thinking with us
  • blog each week to grow as an educational leader; to develop my professional growth and learning
  • blog because I am learning that I have valuable insights and wonderings to share and offer
  • be a model for others in my school, district and PLN

Forming the Blogging Habit

Ideas and thoughts hang on and scratch at me until I write them down.  Getting thoughts and ideas out of my head and onto a journal page has been my practice and, until now, it has worked for me.  What I have reflected upon and the habit I would like to form is blogging online and sharing my reflections with the wider educational community.  I want blogging to be a feel good practice that helps me to put into words what I think.

 Blogging is Our Job

George Couros wrote a post a while back entitled “Blogging is Your Job”.  In this post he states that blogging is your job and “When you look at it as an extra, it will not likely get done.  When you see it as ‘part of your job’, it will get done.” It is my hope to insert  blogging into my schedule because it is part of my job.  I want to share my reflections with others in the hopes that I grow as an educator and learner.  I want to use this blog to document my own journey into blogging Like A Pirate…

I hope this journey of blogging provides me with lots of feedback from educators.  Feedback is of great value.  Feedback can challenge our ways of thinking but can also support us to let us know that we are on the right track as educators and leaders in our schools and roles.  Feedback from others is valuable and helps to define and challenge our thinking and learning.  Now is time to chart the course for places unknown!  What treasures will we discover?  Join me and remember to chart your course to include the #BlogLAP.

why-blog

6 comments

  • Geraldine Lawlor

    Sue, I know exactly what you mean. My blogging efforts start strong and then develop cobwebs as I find many of the same excuses you have cited to keep me reading but not writing. Thank you for your post, it may just be the nudge I need to stop making excuses and start making a commitment to blogging. I wish you all the best in your journey and am looking forward to reading your blog. No pressure! Lol

  • Hi Susan! Welcome back to the blogging world. Like you ( I’m guessing from what I see on your page), I recently started blogging after an attempt years ago that I didn’t keep up with. What a great idea to start the #BlogLAP. I’ve only recently gotten immersed in the pirate philosophy. Good luck with everything and I look forward to reading more of your posts!

  • Thanks for your sharing!

    Like you and George Couros I see blogging as part of my job. I’m struggling as well and feel all the doubts you described above. It’s my wish to be a role model for my colleagues and especially for the students. We need to blog in order to reflect on our growth. Let’s start the journey.

  • Hi Geraldine,

    Thank you for your thoughts. I believe many of us are in the same boat in terms of our blogging practices, or lack thereof. This is why I am making a choice to blog and to stick with it. All PVP in our district have been developing our Professional Growth Plans and one of my goals is to blog. I have read what you have written on Twitter and you have a voice and valuable contributions to make. Keep it up…the growth you will experience will be worth it. And remember to #BlogLAP!

    BTW, I worked in SD82 for 17 years before moving south to Vancouver Island. Nice to connect with you!

  • Hi Michelle,

    Thank you for your comments. Getting started and sticking with it seems to be the theme with blogging these days. I wonder what the secret is and why some people have a knack to find the time and do it consistently. One of my goals is to schedule Blogging into my day…not sure if I can handle the guilt that goes along with the feeling that I should be doing something else with my time, but, we’ll see how it goes. Good luck with your blogging and, please share and tag me on Twitter so that we can connect and learn from each other.

  • Yes, let’s start the Journey! I am so ready to make this part of my practice. People say that it will become easier over time. I hope so. My goal is to write concise posts that capture my thoughts and reflections…I am long-winded and a bit of a perfectionist…concise does not bode well for me, unfortunately! As Aaron Hogan says in his Shattering the Perfect Teacher Myth book, he is a “write-it-skim-it-share-it kind of guy”. I love that philosophy, but I would be happy to be a “write-it-fuss-over-it-hit-publish-after-some-revisions kind of gal. Am I asking for too much?

    I wish you the best in your journey, Verena and hope that you will share your blogging so that we may all share from you!

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