Current Networks

Thursday 8th November 2012

Currently, I use Facebook, Blogger, Google + and Flickr as networks for my Professional Practice. IOn Facebook, we can join groups with others from all over the world that share similar interests.. some may be your favourite films or books where as on a professional level, we can see upcoming vacancies, auditions and all share our knowledge. With Blogger, it has linked the BAPP group together, we interact by viewing and commenting on one another's blogs. We can learn new ideas from people or be critical and discuss the different view points of subjects. Along with Blogger, Google + has also linked us altogether. I don't use it to it's full capacity.. maybe I should explore into it further, I do however have other BAPP students in a 'circle'. Flickr, again, due to this course, I am sharing photographs from both my Professional Practice and personal trips to various places. I can view all other photographs on Flickr, learning more and able to reflect on the images and also comment.

When in dance training, I was part of Dancerspro and Spotlight. These allowed me to keep up to date with any auditions and allowed employers to find and contact me should they want to. I was also linked up to an agency who also gave me a profile online which again, pushed me out into the open. Along with these, attending auditions allowed employers to see you. Whether you got the job or not, they may remember you or keep you on file for something suitable in the future. Auditions also allowed me to speak to other dancers, all of us living similar lives. I could find out about future auditions and be prepared for what would happen. If others had had experiences, sharing them was important. It always helps others for when they have the same experience. 
I have previously gained work from an agency I applied for who didn't need classical dancers on their books at the time, but kept my details just in case. They have phoned me with several auditions and jobs since..! 

There are various other ways I could use networks within my Professional Practice and I feel that now would be the perfect opportunity to sign up to others such as LinkedIn which works with professionals, and allows us to view employers as well as employers finding us! 
My sister uses networking to find new clients and has had several clients come to her through websites. They found her on such sites and have also seen her work via the internet. It just goes to show how networking can always work in our favour. I admire the hard work she puts in. People can criticise and say that working this way 'isn't real work'.. They're wrong.

As mentioned earlier, we all join specific networks or 'groups' to communicate with others that share our interests, have done the same things as us or been to the same places etc. For example, I am part of the Elmhurst School for Dance group on Facebook.. this allows me and all other students to keep updated with the school and any events that may be happening. It is a great way to learn the history of the school and it's pupils and enables us to be aware of any upcoming alumni days that we may want to be a part of. Keeping in contact with previous teachers etc may just land you a job somewhere down the line.. these days, it tends to always be 'it's who you know' that gets you places. Networking and 'getting your face seen' will help with future employment.

For me, Facebook is both a professional and social network. I can keep up to date with friends activities but also talking to friends from different working areas, I gain connections. For example I have recently been back in touch with an old friend. When updating each other with our lives, he mentioned that he knew a new school was opening where I want to move to and that maybe I could research into it and possibly help with the dancing there... he would find out the name of the school for me. Without talking to him, I would never have known that the place existed. This was done through Facebook, it is the only form of communication I have with him now.



To be continued...