Who are we blogging for anyway?

My last journal entry inspired this blog post. After I reflected on some blog comments and had a few conversions about my blog I had at the campus session. I started to think about altering the way I'm writing my blog, in fear that people weren't getting as much from it as I'd like. Some of my questions were;

Can a post be too long? If someone sees a two thousand word blog post, will they bother to read it?

Is the writing style chatty enough? Does it need to be more accessible?

And then an important question arose during my reflections...

Who is this blog for anyway? Surely it's for me... I think it's important to get my ideas out there in the world, but there is something about playing for comments that doesn't sit right with the ethos of the course. This blog is a free space for me to discover my learning and record it. Changing the way I blog would only hinder that journey.

Any thoughts on this would be greatly appreciated...

3rd Campus Session

The sun was shining and the daffodils were in full bloom at Trent Park yesterday, the journey to campus is becoming more comfortable as I attend more. There is a real sense of community brewing between the module, it's becoming therapeutic to see and share ideas/feelings about the course, this is bringing a sense of belonging to my studies on the course.

We began talking through part 3 and explored the 4 tasks on the networked professional. Before no time, a debate had began, we all had our own experience of our current networks and we began to discuss the reasons why we as practitioners network. It was agreed that using a variety of networking tools as appose to just one, could suggest a diversity in you network. It is about not putting all you eggs into one basket and reaching out beyond your own world, thus becoming less vulnerable in your professional position, no one wants their career in the hands of just one person. We then moved on to the sense of a shared responsibility, the idea that one gives time to invest in a contact and this usually comes back to you. The trap would be to give to your network to expect a certain out come, thinking of it more as re-energising your ideas and giving time to your practice would be more beneficial.

We then broke of into groups to create a map of our current networks. My group stuck with the theme of the eggs in a basket, and symbolically mapped out our 'coneggtions' that could be placed in out network basket. This exercise gave us an important realisation and was good food for a discussion. We noticed that after spending considerable time on the map, it actually contained very little professional networks. This eventually made us realise that as a practitioner of the arts, it can be difficult to separate personal and professional relationships, this is a passion after all not just a job. After a long discussion about the benefits of this separation, we created a second networking map, that focused purely on our professional networks. We tried to keep it neat and presentable, but found that most individual networks and contacts were interlinked in some way, this very quickly brought to our attention the importance of the connections between your networks, not only with you, but with each network. There is no one 'right' way to network, the only thing to really do is accept that as a practitioner one must network.  

BranchOut - Is it the next best thing?

An friend called me today telling me I needed to see the latest networking revolution on faceboook. We were discussing professional networking on our last meet and she saw this new facebook tool and thought she'd point it out to me.


BranchOut - "In today's economy there are two competitive advantages that you must have. The first is a positive online presence, and the second is a “social” layer of your career. By social we mean real relationships, your family and friends on Facebook. BranchOut provides both in a way that is 100% professional."


Take a look: http://branchout.com/about/productTour


It seems remove the social elements of professional networking on facebook and also may help to alleviate any confidentiality issues us practitioners are experiencing, thus creating a perfect platform for making connections to fellow professionals. Further more, not only do you connect to your existing facebook contacts, but it can be used as a tool to connect to your contact's contacts. Suddenly not only are your doors of opportunity open to new connections, so is everybody else's, they are all waiting for you to participate in a larger scale network. It's all set up around your profile and you list your areas of professional interest and it claims to improve your professional online image and bring another layer to your career. Could this be the tool I could use to help me make those future connections? What do you make of it? 

TASK 3a - Current networks

My initial reflection on my current professional networks highlighted that each individual practice I engage in, has it's own individual network. These individual networks are of course connected and overlap, thus creating one big network within the world of my practice. In order for me to establish the methods and tools I am using to create and maintain my network, I had to break down and simplify each individual practice, to then create a map of my larger practice as a whole. I did this in the following diagram journal:

This map of my networks really helped me to clearly visualise my different networks, what I found most interesting, is that the diagram journal allowed me to see how inter-connected my practises really are. I always thought my work as a teacher and performer separate, but it has been brought to my attention that there is a network cross over in my two different areas practices.

• Facebook - I have three facebook pages. One for my comedy character, 'Andy Winehouse', one for the theatre school and my personal account. The character facebook page enables me to connect with people in character and helps me maintain the facade of the character. I mention it after every performance in hope to build the network. Take flight theatre school has it's facebook page too and is linked to the website. I also have my own personal page, that seems to be used by directors and writers also, even though this is personal, it is a huge connection to many future employers and I have had many job offers from facebook. This is a fantastic networking tool and a very good place to start your search in connecting to people. It seems even other networking tools connect through facebook, like twitter and blogs. I like to call it, mother network to networking.

• Twitter - Take flight has a twitter account. It's used to reach the local area and shout about up and coming events. Twitter is something in the network communication world I looked at earlier in a blog titled, TASK 1b: Reader in professional communication technologies (part 2 - Twitter). Here I use my current network to find out how my friend Helen is networking. The blog shines a slightly negative light on twitter and my friend's review of this networking tool described it as, "quite irritating", saying, "I don't really want to be telling 'tweetsville' what I am having for my dinner".  I have to say I agree with Helen Colley, It's a great tool for selling a business like my theatre school, but as a performer I am more than just a business, this is also my life. Privacy is clearly still important to some people.

• You Tube - I have a promotional video (hyper-linked) for my comedy act. This is a fantastic networking method, often in meeting a potential employer, all I have to do is pull out the iphone and away you go. An act that I am trying to sell now has it's own portable video, giving a visual taster of my work. The views and comments on the video also help gather an idea of how the act is received by the public.

• Showcase - In short, a chance for you to perform your act in a room full of potential clients. Arranged by a cabaret agent and just like a variety show, different acts do a performance set and then hope that they get booked. It's marketing time for your cabaret business.

• TES - 'The largest network of teachers in the world', this is a great connection to the teaching industry. Here I can connect and converse web forums, from classroom issues to teacher pensions, it is a professional network full of people in your industry. Link: http://www.tes.co.uk

• London Drama - A subscription network that also connects you to other teachers, but this time specifically to drama. It provides me with access to drama practitioner workshops and conferences, where again useful connections can be made specific to your field. Link: http://www.londondrama.org/

• Goldsmiths University - In true old fashion style, I knocked on a door of opportunity and by chance it opened. This act of bravery has now given me contact with Amanda Kipling, head of the drama PGCE course. I can go along to her classes and observer but also connect to training drama teachers too.

• Catherine Cook - I have discussed Catherine's work in my blog, TASK 2d - Inquiry. She is very valuable to my network and provides me with an insight into the teaching profession.

• Agent's, Casting directors, Spotlight, Parties and functions - A hard network to break into. This corner of my network is something I have been nurturing since my final year of drama school. It seems to be about being at the right place at the right time, who you know helps. Once you have the agent connection, the rest should fall into place, that is if the agent is well connected. It is basically a chain that ends with you and getting to the top of the chain can be an arduous affair. A useful place to go is a theatre opening night party or a film's wrap party, here is where the top dogs tend to dwell. The fictional word 'schmoozing' is the only way to describe it, I hate it and I'm not very good at it. I once offended a casting director because I didn't recognise her, she never auditioned me again. From that moment on, I banned myself from theatre parties.

• Friend's and colleagues - For me the most important. This is where the golden network is, you can always rely on a friend for information, support or work. This is where experience plays a big hand in my network, every job I do I take a handful of great people with me. They are friends at first, I want nothing from them, but just the other day a fellow actor sent me a message via facebook explaining he was a director now and would I audition for me. In my eyes the most valuable networking tool available to me.

There is a world of networking that others in my field use that I am yet to discover, Stage Status. My earlier blog already explored the world of Stage Status, it seems to be the way interactive web 2.0 platforms are developing. Like the above mentioned TES, big general networks are now cornering off and becoming specific to a certain industry. At first I liked the idea, I described it as, "one big theatrical party full of potential useful connections to make". It does help eradicate any of the pressures that come with networking in the flesh. However I am still yet to join, my apprehension in signing up maybe an indication that I'm not fully convinced. A question arises, how much networking can one do before your industry has enough of you? I think networking needs to be clean and tasteful, joining too many communication technology websites may give you more connection in your industry, but I want to stay in demand and not over display my presence. I do have a professional reputation to uphold. I am aware that Stage Status is available to me, I'd like it to stay that way for now.

In the first task I completed in this module, I had blogged about the different aspects of my practice (hyper-linked) and how it was hard to connect my work on my CV and the networks my practice brings, Adesola Akinleye gave me a fantastic idea. She has a website that gives an over view of her practice. This could be a fantastic network connection and give me a through line to all my networks, it could act as a super hub to all my networks and this could encourage more inter-connection between my different practices. Also, I have been looking at my personal facebook, I am thinking of creating another. My current facebook seems to be a professional and personal networking platform at the moment. I would like to separate these, especially with being a teacher, this separation will give me that air of confidentiality I need. My personal facebook can have photo's of me on holiday for my mum to enjoy, but my professional world can be oblivious. This is all about creating the presence I want in my professional network, to achieve this I need to have a facebook that dedicates itself to connecting with other professionals. What I don't want to see is a director's comment under a photo of my work, next to a comment by my mother telling me, I'm still her baby. Many practitioners are having work facebook's now, Stephen Mear for example, I worked for him in 2006 and now he actually has someone working for him who is solely responsible for his professional network. It's taking the personal aspect out of the professional networking - let's talk business.

Upon reflecting on my network there is an old issue I have I feel I need to address. The motives of others within my networks. "It's not what you know, it's who you know", "you never know who is going to be there" and "work the room", these are just a few items of theatrical advice I've heard time and time again. I find it tiresome, things idea of the constant proving of who you are and how you deserve to be there. Does my CV just decorated my network? I don't understand, when as a professional do we arrive in a place where I know you, you know me and we can get on with what we all came here to do, be practitioners. I guess there is some accepting to do, there seems to be only one type of practitioner and that is a networked one. This does leave me with a feeling of insincerity to a network within the theatre arts, this feeling is rooted in the truth that we are all on the network for one reason, we may want something. This truth has been realised by many practitioners, the key could be the acknowledgement that there is nothing wrong with engaging in a relationship that is purely work based, in view of the interest of improving your career. This acknowledgement may free up this sense of ulterior motives, but how far do you trust these relationships? How good is it for your well being as a person, to engage in such relationships that only want you for the value of the contact? When do we start behaving like humans and not like ambitious animals? This also links back to the protection of my confidentiality. If I'm to engage in this network, I need to make it clear who is in my work and who is in my life.

Moving forward with my current network, I want to play with some ideas of how it can be developed and improved. I think I will start by the above mentioned facebook separation, this will make the divid between life and practice clearer. I would love to explore the idea of having a website, this would be a great tool to unify my networks. I need to look into how it could work for me and what maintaining it would entail. But more importantly, where can I connect with more people with the knowledge of transforming from actor to teacher? Is there a networking site for training teachers? What blogs exist out there that might give me these connections I seek? This will all help in pointing my network to one of the future, a drama practitioner's network that is underlined by my past experiences, surrounded by other drama practitioners and in the centre, me the drama teacher. The first thing I noticed when I looked at the diagram of my network was that it told a story of my career, it was like my network was a comment on my practice. I realise now that who you know is important, if I'm saying that your networks are the very plot of the story of my practice, the quality of those connections within that network is vital and in constant need of nursing. One needs to invest in their professional network.

No use crying over critical reflection!

I theme my journal entries with a song that would underscore the writing to set the mood, last nights entry was Under Attack by Abba. Does anyone else struggle with critical reflection?

Every time I post a blog, there is always a feeling of anxiety after. I thought about it, it's not that I'm trying to get it 'right' or scared about getting it 'wrong', as like most now know, neither can be achieved. There is no right or wrong, there just is. However, it's the idea that I have publicly voiced my work, which is apart of me and now it's subject to judgement or critical reflection - are they even the same thing?

When the criticism comes back, I instantly take it to heart. I have learnt a good use for my journal in this, I use it as a place to go and get all my initial emotional garbage out of my system, then reflect on what I'm thinking and go back to the comment. This way I can eradicate any personal tone from the reply and maintain a professional voice. Will there come a time when I don't have to go through the process of removing my emotions? I seem to see it as a personal attack at first, why is this my primordial reaction to critical reflection?

In my search of how the rest of the world feels about this I found a website...

http://personalexcellence.co/blog/how-to-deal-with-critical-people/

The link provides helpful tips on dealing with critical reflection. Looks like I'll be needing it, my work on reflective practice is still to be done, but then is it ever. The answer is of course no.

Summary of Part 2, Module 1

A pattern is forming, I work on a part in a module, I have a skype session with Paula Nottingham, I blog a summary to mark the notion that I'm moving on. I like patterns, I find them comforting, with the insecurity that comes with the unknown future tasks, I take comfort in a bit of order and structure to the way I blog the tasks. I'm finding that I am developing a real style in my approach to the tasks and breaking old thought patterns, a new outlook on my work is developing and hopefully an improved one. Part 2 enabled me to explore the world of critical reflection. On my journey I looked into the idea of keeping a journal and established it's role within my practice. Then I explored the many different ways to write your journal and the benefits to the different methods, exploring this further I played with the various modes of journal too, being as creative as possible with the reflective tools. I then took a look at what the theories behind reflective practice were, I wanted to understand what they were saying and see it's relevance to my practice. My final stop in the journey was to look at the ideas of those in my practice, who do I agree with? Who do I admire? What further inquiries would this bring? At first reader 2 alarmed me, but then I'm learning that all readers will probably do the same, I just hope I learn to manage this shock I seem to get every time I'm presented with a set of new ideas on the course. When I started the course, it was words like 'reflection' that made me aware of the work that was cut out for me. I learn that the fear of the unknown isn't necessarily a bad thing, it's like the sort of fear and adrenaline you have before a performance. I use it to enter into a new set of ideas with caution and carefully observe everything, then decide what I am to do with the information presented to me. Not so scary after all...

Question

Can I just move on from task 2 or do I need to check with Paula?

I'm still clinging on to 'miss please hold me hand' mode. I need to really establish a confidence in my learning and my decisions, putting it more candidly, I'm my own boss on the course and I need to grow up. I need to stop playing for approval and get on with the tasks, that is where the learning is. So no more 'please miss' - just get on with it.

My online rapport with other students isn't really happening? I'm not really getting comments, is this a timing thing? Do I need to slow down and publish fewer posts so I can match the timing of others?


Comments on the blogs are very important. It supports the whole idea of community interaction that Web 2.0 supports. I found that I am finding it difficult to get people to read my work and strike up conversations with them. As if by magic Liam Conman publised the following post, http://tmcofliam.blogspot.com/2012/03/effective-blogging-how-to-encourage.html. He created a sort of trouble shooting guide to effective blogging. It really helped and I will endeavour to improve my online relationships.

Additional reading


This was an intense read, David Kolb's scientific approach to reflection was definitely exploring the theory of a subject in a way I haven't experienced before. I was particularly interested in the learning cycle.

Put into words, the figure illustrates that concrete experiences come through the sensory cortex, reflective observation involves the integrative cortex at the back, creating new abstract concepts occurs in the frontal integrative cortex, and active testing involves the motor brain. In other words, the learning cycle arises from the structure of the brain (Kolb, 2005).

It was interesting for me to take his cycle and apply it to the reflection I do in my practice. Learning about how I learn is important. Twyla Tharp supported this idea in my next additional reading choice,


“the better you know yourself, the more you will know when you are playing to your strengths”(Tharp, 2006).


 Tharp created an interesting argument that using words as reflection isn't always useful and the practitioner can use any method suitable to them, such as muscle memory.


Jennifer Moon's book enabled me to have a greater understanding of my journal and really pinpointed what it's job actually is,

“A learning journal is essentially a vehicle for reflection” (Moon, 2006).  Jennifer Moon describes a learning journal, “as a personal development plan, a ‘progress file’ or a record of achievement” (Moon, 2006).

Understanding brings control, in having a good concept of my journal and the use of it as reflective practice, I can use it as a tool to investigate my ideas.

Final Summary

I find my new learning exiting, I think I have always reflected, as artist do it naturally. What interests me is my growing knowledge of the tools I can consciously, not habitually use to improve my professional practice. Having a concept of reflection will enable me to put my ideas through a systematic process and use my journal to brew new ideas. As always the tasks are unfinished and subject to interaction online, their presences lives on through my blog and I intend to engage in these conversations and learn more from the ideas of others. Finally I notice that I need to develop a confidence in my voice within my academic writing. It seems I don't trust my views fully and quote the ideas of others too often. I hope that in time I will establish a professional, academic voice that stands up on it's own, but takes inspiration from others. I went a bit crazy on the last piece of work and cited every point I made, I now understand that it needs to be a balance. I hope to create a piece that contains my ideas on the page, but clearly displays the ingredients for how I got there.

References:

Kolb, D et al, 2005. Learning styles and learning Spaces: Enhancing experiential learning in higher education [online] Available from: http://rt5vx6na7p.search.serialssolutions.com/?ctx_ver=Z39.88- 2004&ctx_enc=info%3Aofi%2Fenc%3AUTF- 8&rfr_id=info:sid/summon.serialssolutions.com&rft_val_fmt=info:ofi/fmt:kev :mtx:journal&rft.genre=article&rft.atitle=Learning+Styles+and+Learning+Sp aces%3A+Enhancing+Experiential+Learning+in+Higher+Education&rft.jtitle =Academy+of+Management+Learning+%26+Education&rft.au=Alice+Y+Ko l
b&rft.au=David+A+Kolb&rft.date=2005-06-01&rft.issn=1537- 260X&rft.volume=4&rft.issue=2&rft.spage=193&rft.externalDBID=AMLE& rft.externalDocID=866536871 [accessed 24 Feb 2012]
Moon, J. 2006, A handbook for Reflective Practice and Professional Development [online], Available from: http://www.dawsonera.com/depp/reader/protected/external/AbstractView/S97 80203969212 [accessed 24 Fen 2012]
Tharp, T. 2006. The creative habit: Learn it and use it for life: a practical guide, New York, Simon & Schuster

A poem journal - Dyslexia

I wanted to break my journal confidentiality rule and share a poem - sorry journal!
I recently had a learning difficulty screening at Middlesex University. The test confirmed that I am dyslexic and have developed coping mechanisms naturally. Being dyslexic is all I have known so the diagnosis doesn't change anything, but it helps me understand the way I think and aids me to know what I have to do to put my ideas out there in the world. One of my screening tests were to think about how I write, I noticed that I seem to have thoughts and then have to translate them into a form that the reader will understand. There seems to be a natural coping process I have developed that can transfer my thoughts to words on a page. I thought it would be interesting, to write a poem without this translation. Write the way I think...

Slow read. Stop read.
Slow write. Caps write.
Breath tight. Heart tight.
Words move. Numbers move.
Mind stop. Eyes stop.
Red face. Hot face.
Memory fail. Speech fail.
Not stupid. Dyslexic stupid.

(Ahmet, A. 2012. Journal)

TASK 2d - Inquiry

I now look out there in the world of my practice and see what links my ideas to those of others. So far I have been playing with the idea of reflection on myself, but another useful reflective practice is for one to be able to critically reflect on the ideas and works of others. My inquiry takes me to four individual people, some I have met, some close friends and others I would love to meet, all with one thing in common, we seem to share the same idea within our practice.


As a pupil at secondary school, my first and for most ambition was to be a drama teacher, I ended up falling away from this and becoming an actor. Catherine Cook was my Drama and English tutor and looking back, I really felt inspired by her. She seems to be present in my writing and within my work the theatre. I came from a non theatrical family, I feel it was her who became my support figure to pursue a career within the arts. As an actor she supported me in many performances and now it seems fitting that as I make my journey from actor to drama teacher, it would be her that is a major link in getting there. When I began my career change venture, I was informed that I needed a substantial amount of school observation experience. Catherine is head of the drama department at Jo Richardson Community School, she was more than happy to have me on board as an observer of her classes and of other teachers. This is where my passion for bringing drama into schools really grew, this idea that these children don't want to be on stage or TV, but want to learn skills for life excites me. Giving them tools like confidence, communication and reflection will enable them to become fine young people and those skills will encompass everything they for the rest of their life's. What an amazing thing to be apart of? To be able to create an inspiring platform for young people to grow and flourish. It is in talking to Ms Cook, that this very passion I believe in began to emerge and we share the same passion for the importance of drama in schools. When watching her classes, I find it fascinating how she almost has a different teachers mask for each year group, the pupils would never know, but with each individual level, there is a subtle change in her approach, a skill I hope to develop. I enjoy observing and learning from her and I think this is because we share the same enthusiasm for the theatrical arts in schools.

Website: http://www.jrcs.bardaglea.org.uk/drama


I am the co-director to the new Take Flight children's theatre school. My business partner is Stevie Tate-Bauer and we met ten years ago at drama school. After ten years of working, we sat back and noticed a hole in the theatre school opportunities for children in are area of south east London. The school was opened March 2011 and we couldn't have anticipated how well the project has done, the reception has been very positive. We noticed that most all of our customer base was financially comfortable families, children lucky enough to have both parents working and earning enough to pay for extra curriculum. However there was a substantial amount of customer enquiries that just couldn't afford to send their child to us, from single parents to unemployed, quite rightly after school clubs are out of the question. This made us so sad, it was heart breaking that if you were born lucky you got to come to our theatre school. This idea didn't sit well with us, but what could we do? We couldn't just say, "don't worry, if you can't afford it, come along for free." We got on to the council, we were invited to a committee meeting and after much negotiation, we now have a grant system in place, supported by the council. This is to cover the fees of any children we feel deserve to join us but struggle financially. It was great to share this sadness with my business partner Stevie and I am so glad that after all the hard work, that sadness was transformed into a really great thing. Exploring this further, what other art/theatre schools out there also share this passion? What are they doing to support this idea?

Website: http://www.takeflighttheatreschool.co.uk/#!


My next person, I have only met once. It was in passing at Her Majesty's Theatre in the West End, London. All I could say was, "Hello, I'm Danielle's friend." "Hello, Danielle's friend," replied Julie Walters, I was star struck. We share the one most important thing to me and my work, be it teacher, company member or actor, we both love to make people laugh. There is something about capturing a group of people and engaging with them in laughter, it's such a wonderful gift and comedy keeps us alive. Julie Walters for me encompasses the kind of actor I am/want to be, even though of course she is a national treasure and I am still yet to be discovered. It is this idea that there is life and there is theatre, both important but there is a time when one gets home and stops performing. I love she doesn't take it all too seriously, she knows what she does well and she just gets on with. I have always said, I enjoyed being an actor and then I decided to make a career of it. It's the pressure that goes with making money from your art that can be detrimental to it, removing the passion or love it becomes about dates and figures. Julie Walters helped me make this realisation, I decided to not to neurotically obsess over my so called career and bring it back to what really made me happy, making people laugh. It was this notion that gave me the bravery I needed to finally pluck the courage and devise a comedy cabaret act. I would have never agreed to put a dress on early on in my career and call myself Andy Winehouse, it was all about the right character role at the right time. I threw all of this up in the air and decided to make them laugh, but more importantly, make myself laugh. It would be interesting to find out if comedy and teaching are linked in anyway? Are the skills I have learnt on the comedy stage, transferable to the classroom?

The following website is an interview with Julie Walters and the Guardian:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/culture/2011/oct/31/julie-walters-actor

My next task was to search my practice for that of which I don't understand, when I reflected on the first three people, it was obvious within minutes who that person would be. Finding something I don't understand and sharing this with someone proved hard. It happened accidentally whilst discussing the theatre industry with a group of old friends/work colleges. "Wizard of Oz was awful," said Grace Harrington. She talked us through the show and claimed it was a disappointment, this was because the wizard was played by famous TV astrologist Russell Grant. This opened the flood gates for a heated debate, what was this obsession with our industry and celebrities? The show Chicago seems to have started the trend, it opened to a honest west end cast in 1998, but since then the show has become an obvious stepping stone for reality TV shows. From Xfactor to Dancing on Ice, celebrities make the cross over from TV shows to the glittering West End stage. We discussed that Bonnie Langford, a well established actress in her own right, couldn't even get an audition to play Roxie Hart in Chicago, the very second she got voted out of Dancing on Ice, she announced, live on air, that she would be joining the West End cast. I don't understand what's happening? Why do the British public prefer to see a compensated performance by a TV celebrity, than a West End professional doing the job they are trained to do? It leaves us professional with the insult that our experience and skills are of no value to the theatre industry, someone can sit in a televised house for six weeks (Big Brother) and be considered over you, for a job you've trained to do. It might be interesting to see how producers feel about this? Is it just about money? Or do they have integrity? Celebrities maybe the way to get bums on seats now, but myself and Grace Harrington still don't understand it...

Website: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/7444254.stm

TASK 2b cont. - Different Modes of Journal.

After posting my blog, Journal Writing Experience, I decided to explore the journal further. As I reflected on the task, it focuses on how to right your journal, but I was interested in discovering different ways in which to keep a journal. I thought would be interesting to stay with the idea of my journal, but give them a fusion of different themes. In composing this blog i did have a difficult dilemma to deal with. The privacy of my journal is still something very important to me, ideally I would have attached and linked the different journal mode as examples. however to maintain the respect of the confidentiality of my journal, I will only describe the modes of journal.

Video Journal - A great idea to capture thoughts and feelings through speech. Almost like meeting a friend for coffee or lunch, you can sit and talk about yourself. In doing so you will be reflecting and recording good food for new ideas.

Sound Track Journal - I have been doing this in my written journal. I basically pick a song at the end of my journal that sums up the particular mood and atmosphere, so if the journal was read aloud it would make a fantastic underscoring to the piece. To list a few we have, Out here on my own - Fame; Don't worry, be happy - Bob Marley; Rainy days and Mondays - The Carpenters; I believe the children are our future - Whitney Huston; Marry the night - Lady Gaga. this is a really fun idea and can add colour to the journal entry and help the reflective process be a bit interesting. It could be used for all sorts of ideas, such as what movie would I be? Or food?

Voice Journal - Especially effective when you are on the move, a voice journal is a both time simple and easy. Here you are introducing another sense in the equation, on only the words become a reflective tool but the tone, pitch and pace of the voice can play a huge part in learning about our thoughts and feelings.

Poem Journal - One for the arty types, a poem journal is a great way of digging deep into feeling and bringing up all kinds of ideas that lie otherwise buried. Poetry has been used as a therapeutic tool for years, it was no surprise that I thought of this.

Drawing/Painting Journal - Another therapeutic approach, but for those people who feel laguasizing their feelings difficult, one could draw or paint any kind of abstract piece or even mold a piece of clay, all in the name of reflection. This could help you visually see something that you failed to see through words.

Dance Journal - Not one for me, but why not communicate your journal entry through movement and dance. There maybe a continuing theme that might be brought to your attention, or a new idea could arise from a particular shape or movement of reflection.

Montage journal - Again the people who tend to lean towards the visual journal might prefer this, as can be done both digitally and in hard copy. This enables you to look outward and search for images and artifacts that reflect what you feel. In doing his, great ideas can come to you, but this time as you are looking outside yourself, you could stumble across an idea that your mind would not have been open to. It might be like pushing the boundries of your reflection. A great tool for the beginning process of your work.

Looking further into the task has enabled me to affirm the creativity that comes with keeping a journal, not only by the way I write it, but by the different forms or modes it can appear in. Whatever I'm using, as long as I'm looking back and reflecting, food is given to my new ideas.