LibraryTechtonics

I want to see this happen at more conferences.

Step 1:  Make everyone stand up and find a spot along the wall.

Step 2:  Now having everyone stand in front of another person.

Step 3:  Have everyone talk to the person in front of them for about 1 minute.

Step 4:  Announce a “shift!” and have everyone take a step to their right.

Step 5: Rinse and repeat as long as time will allow.

I came in a little late in the game, since I was at the registration desk when this networking two-step began.  But I was encouraged to jump into the fray, and quickly found myself chatting with Colleen Kaman, who ended up being one of the speakers in the first session I attended today.  In the few minutes of hopping to my right, I picked up 5 business cards, made 5 connections, and ended up talking to Lilly J., author of Consuming Lilly for an extra 10 minutes.

Utter chaos?  Kinda, yeah.  A minute is not nearly long enough, especially given that every “shift!” had to be announced repeatedly for another *minute* before it actually happened in the line.  Totally worth the chaos? Absolutely.  It’s one of those things about social networking:  whether you do it online or in meatspace, a little chaos goes a long way to community growth.  Added bonus: there’s no time to be scared or nervous, you just gotta do it.  Talk about personal growth.

Idea for you: try a little “speed dating” in your online social networking.

Step 1: “Walk up to” a Twitter feed that looks kinda interesting, or happens to be using the hashtag #blogherboston.

Step 2: Send the equivalent of a 1 minute chat in the form of 140 characters.  Tell them why you follow them, or something interesting that might be interesting to them.

Step 3:  See what happens.

You know, just for kicks. Not on Twitter?  No worries.  Try leaving a brief comment on a blog, something really simple.

I’d love to know hwat happens, so drop me a comment and lemme know how it goes.

The Pour House, 907 Boylston Street, Boston, Massachusetts
http://bostonblogevents.com/blogtoberfest

I’ll be hanging with bloggers from all over the Metro Boston area tonight at this free event. Why do I go to things like this, you might ask? I mean, I’m not networking to find a new job outside of librarianship, and I’m not a marketing person, so what gives?

Any blogger, especially a librarian blogger, benefits from meeting more of their family, blogger, who aren’t necessarily their genus, librarian (I consider species here to be the flavor of librarian: public, academic, corporate, archivist… you get the gist). Whenever you get out into the world in a non-genus setting, you are doing outreach, telling the larger family what librarians are up to, smashing stereotypes, getting ideas, inspiring unpatrons to become patrons, and much more. You represent your genus when you get out there.

You can also shop for ideas, and learn about new tech by hanging with people in the know. What’s new and upcoming? What’s going to tank? What do you use that for? You get a sense of real Web 2.0/social software culture, as well as just being social. And, because so many of the people who attend these things are helpful as well as social, it’s a good way to shop for people to help you, often times for free. Friends like helping friends, see?

If you are a librarian who blogs, how often do you get out to these things? I’d be interested to know, so drop me a comment about your experiences. If you’re not sure how to find the blogger family in your area, try sites like Meetup.com, or Ning.com, and search for “blogger” in your vicinity. You can even try searching for groups on Facebook or MySpace. It’s like any other reference question, you just need to be your creative selves in finding the answer.

If you’re in the Boston area, and you want to get involved, let me know. Sometimes it helps n00bs to have a buddy at these things, and I can definitely introduce you around. And, if you happen to be attending Blogtoberfest tonight, drop me a comment and let me know!

Web Innovators Group (WebInno14)
Royal Sonesta Cambridge, 40 Edwin Land Boulevard, Cambridge, MA 02141

WebInno is an informal gathering of people interested in internet and mobile innovation free and open to all in the community. The Agenda is to start with a few quick demos, make introductions all around, and then schmooze the rest of the evening.

Why do I go? To meet people who work with and are interested in technology, learn about new web stuff, and get ideas. These types of networking opportunities are great if you have questions, and you want a live person to answer them for you in English. If you’re in the Metro Boston Area, and you plan on going, drop me a comment and lemme know.