All my life I have felt torn in different directions by the diversity of my interests. The crucial thing I got from reading Stephen Downes’ “How to be Heard” was to look at this from above, seeing myself at the centre with lines radiating to all those things no matter what they are - and to turn the arrows inward. Instead of being pulled apart, I am what draws these diverse things together. There needs to be no justification for the diversity of my interests, no connection between them, other than that I exist and I relate to these things. Downes says
The point here is that it is better not to focus on some specific topic, the way a university course does, but rather, to aim at some sort of intersection that touches on all of your interests. Anybody can write about e-learning, but only you can write about themes found in e-learning, romance fiction and skydiving. What would that look like? I haven’t a clue - that’s why I would need to read your blog.
So keep reading. I haven’t a clue what’s coming next either.
May 15, 2008 at 1:16 pm
Yeah, Stephen’ right. The blogs that would be top of my list would be the ones where you learn something about the writer, what they think, what they do, not just on the one subject are that they work in. I do keep my PhD notes separate, but mostly because they are only of interest to a few people - and Im always surprised when I find that someone’s been reading it. OTOH I am always very surprised when someone *isn’t* reading my public blog.
May 15, 2008 at 2:14 pm
I’m sitting here amazed that after all this time I still have two readers!
[guiltily goes on over to M-h's blog...]
May 31, 2008 at 2:16 pm
Make that three.