Things 6, 7 and 12: Catching up on Things- the net works! Being Sociable!

Having just returned from holiday, I thought it was about time that I did a bit of catching up (I currently feel a long way from beaches and cocktails now....sigh!).

 Things 6, 7 and 12 all seemed rather inter-related to me so I thought best to 'kill two birds with one stone' (or three in this case....what can I say, I am nothing if not a multi-tasker!). Following that train of thought, I have now very much got into the joys of Twitter. As mentioned previously it has indeed proved rather joyfully useful in keeping up-to-date with what's going on and has been very helpful for gaining information from those more knowledgeable and experienced than I. Indeed online networking has generally been particularly beneficial for this and I have now also joined LISNPN and it would be very good to take advantage of their 'real-life' networking opportunities at some point in the future. I am similarly already a member of CILIP, my special interest groups being Rare Books and Special Collections and Academic Libraries and I would be very keen to attend some of my local East of England Branch meetings, in the name of 'putting oneself out there', making contacts, learning more and sharing ideas.

 Admittedly in terms of the online networks, I have lurker tendencies. But I do find it really interesting to explore other areas of the profession outside my own areas of interest and particularly trying to glean general, pertinent information about recent developments and shifts in the profession. 

 I have definitely felt the benefit of good networks/networking during my voluntary experience, where I have been introduced to some amazing people and have had many great opportunities through simply connecting with people through people (if you see what I mean). It certainly is a case of 'who you know, not what you know' (well sort of- what you know, is in my humble opinion still rather important!) Nonetheless my point is, that I have gained opportunities that I may otherwise have missed  out on if it wasn't for drawing on the experiences and contacts of others. I hope that one day, I will be able to offer help to someone who is in my position now and help them along their career path as I have myself been helped.