Putting New Skills to the Test

At the beginning of this semester, I had no idea I would learn so much about social media and how to properly use different sites for professional purposes. It just so happened that I was able to put most of these skills to the test right away! I was at first skeptical about Twitter. Not knowing how the site worked was a little overwhelming. As the class continued I slowly began to understand the purpose of Twitter and how to tweet.  Only being allowed 140 characters makes sure you are as concise as possible and only presenting the important information. During the past three months, I was able to practice using Twitter for professional means, not only through ALES 204 but also through promoting the Canadian National College Finals Rodeo (CNCFR). I tweeted during each college circuit rodeo, letting my followers know how the rodeo season was unfolding. From this, Northlands retweeted many of my tweets in hopes to spark interest in the public for CNCFR. I really have enjoyed communicating this way and will continue to use Twitter after the completion of ALES 204.

I have had a personal account through Facebook for quite a while, but had very little experience using it for professional means. I found creating a professional Facebook page to promote yourself has its advantages; it can also put personal information into the wrong hands.  Even though I have concerns with a personal professional Facebook page, I have found using Facebook for a company or association can be an extremely successful way to provide the public with information. Information about the company or association such as the website, email and contact is displayed for all to see. Weekly, important dates and reminders are sent out using wall posts can be sent out. This allows the public to stay informed and allows the general public to see what a company or association does.

Briggs, N. (2012). CTV Edmonton Interview-Youtube [Screenshot]. Retrieved from: http://www.youtube.com

Public speaking, presentation and interview skills learned during ALES 204 were fantastic! I quickly got to put these skills to the test, once again, promoting the CNCFR. I was approached by CTV Edmonton, Shaw TV Edmonton, CFCW Radio and the Edmonton Journal to do interviews about my experience with the Canadian Intercollegiate Rodeo Association and about the CNCFR. Using the interview and public speaking skill taught throughout the semester, I was able to answer questions confidently and professionally. Fellow ALES 204 student Chelsea has also put her public speaking skills to the test as a part of the University of Alberta Athletics. She agrees that you must be confident while public speaking and the way to get there is practice with the help of the skills learned through ALES 204!

Being able to directly connect what I have learned through ALES 204 with the Canadian Intercollegiate Rodeo Association has really proven how beneficial both social media and communication is in today’s society. I have been able to connect with each and every piece of class material presented. Overall, this class has given me the opportunity to enhance my communication skills and I look forward to using these skills in the future.

Comments on other ALES 204 classmates blogs:
Cassandra
Jami
Clara
Loana
Cassandra

Keeping it Professional

The experience of creating and maintaining a blog is extremely beneficial in presenting ideas or experiences. Blogging gives you the opportunity to present information in a simple and easy to read format. People are able to interact with the author and their ideas, soon after it is published, which is something that cannot be offered on paper. Technology is the new way to communicate and I have had the opportunity to be shown firsthand the benefits through ALES 204.

Soon after the class began, I was approached by Northlands to help promote the Canadian National College Finals Rodeo (CNCFR) through a blog. Another contestant and I were to “blog our way to the CNCFR”.  Each week during our college rodeo season, which began in early February, we were to write a short blog post about our experience travelling and competing on the college rodeo circuit. The purpose behind the blog was to spark interest in the general public to attend the CNCFR. Unlike the E-portfolio blog for ALES 204, which is much more scholastically based, this blog took on more of a “personal diary” structure.  We wanted the readers to relate to our personal stories so when they attended the CNCFR they knew what we, as contestants, had to go through in order to compete at the finals. Rosie has also been using a blog in promoting agriculture much like I am promoting the CNCFR. She started this as marketing competition at a cattle show and has continued, providing information about agriculture to those who would like to know more.

Northlands. (2012). Canadian National College Finals Rodeo Blog [Screen Capture]. Retrieved from http://www.farmandranchshow.com/shows/cncfr/cncfr-blog

Even though the structure of the CNCFR blog is in more of a “personal diary” format, it is not much different from this E-portfolio blog which we have been creating during ALES 204. Whether it is through an assignment or sharing an experience, professionalism is a must! You want to present yourself as a professional and the proper use of grammar is critical! It is hard to follow along and relate to something that is poorly written and full of slang. You want to make sure that you take your time and make sure the entire blog post flows. The easier it is to read, the more likely someone will come back to read it again.

The Wonderful World of Wikipedia

Wiki sites are a great way for people to share information and ideas easily through the internet. It allows for current information to be viewed and updated and outdated information to be removed. These sites can be extremely beneficial in allowing professionals to present their ideas and current findings to the public, quickly and easily. Wikipedia is one of those wiki sites which started small and then gradually “took off.”  Wikipedia began in 2001 by a couple of internet entrepreneurs who came up with the idea of putting an encyclopedia on-line.  Today, it has grown to over 21 million pieces of information and is one of the first pieces of resource material for many people. 

Wikipedia got its name from the word wiki – meaning a website where anyone can add, modify or delete contents and there is more than just one website that conforms to this idea.  Other examples of wiki sites include Facebook, YouTube and MySpace – these sites also allow you to post, share, edit and view information with a variety of people.Wikipedia is a site which can be easily edited and viewed all over the world. New trends, information and ideas are added daily. This allows the users to access the most current and up-to-date information on millions of topics.  The general public has access to add a new article or to edit one they found on-line.  The specific topics are endless. Fellow blogger Cassandra shares a simliar view on the importance of Wikipedia. She agrees that it is a great place to get some background information on a topic in which you might not be familiar with. Even though it is a good source to get background information on, you still have to be cautious of vandalism, as anyone can edit a page. 

I chose to add to the Stringhalt stub. This is a condition in horses which results in the over exaggerated movement on one or both hind limbs. We have encountered this condition in one of our own horses and knew little about it at the time. I found 4 references from past research on the Australian Stringhalt and described this form of the condition. The most difficult part of this assignment was integrating the html in order to make the page look like the other Wikipedia pages. Adding citations was the most difficult, while bolding and adding links to other Wikipedia articles was the easiest.

Briggs, N. (2012). Stringhalt Wikipedia Entry [Screen Capture]. Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stringhalt

 

Although Wikipedia is an easily accessible and quick way to access information about a large variety of topics, there have been some concerns on how reliable this information really is. A disadvantage to allowing the public to edit and add information is that edits may not always be precise.  They are also open to vandalism.  It is through the system of having registered users who are allowed to modify, delete or correct articles, does the system work.  A consensus of authors must approve the page before it is posted.  This alleviates the problem of one author having authority over the page and posting their biased beliefs or incorrect information. Once a page is posted, authors and editors can track the pages to make sure that any further edits or additions stay true to the articles.  This is all done with special tracking software designed for these special wiki sites. Most pages found in Wikipedia link reference sections so you are not dependent upon the Wikipedia article alone.  These multiple references back up the information provided by the article and are useful in sending users to corresponding articles which take you straight to the article or page which the Wikipedia article was founded.

References
Multiple Contributors. (March 20, 2012). Reliablity of Wikipedia. Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reliability_of_Wikipedia.
Multiple Contributors. (March 20, 2012). Wikipedia: About. Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:About.

Marketing Yourself Through Facebook

I had the opportunity to make a professional Facebook page this week in ALES 204. I have used and managed pages for associations and businesses, but I never thought to market myself in this way. This page is much different from that of your personal page. It allows you to market yourself to future employers without them having to see your personal page. Personal pages can be difficult to keep strictly professional, as much of the public content can build up over time.

Briggs, N. (2012). Professional Facebook Page [Screenshot]. Retrieved from http://www.facebook.com

Having a Facebook page such as the one displayed in the snapshot above can be extremely beneficial. For many employers who search Google looking for prospective applicants, ’a professional and well written Facebook page is a must. I was able to organize my information, goals and experience and lay it out in a simple, easy to read format.  The fact it is easy to update and can be updated at any time, or anywhere, makes Facebook a perfect place to add  information for prospective employers searching for that great employee.  



I am currently managing a professional page for the Canadian Intercollegiate Rodeo Association.  I am now finding that creating and managing these pages is quite simple.   ALES 204 has taught me how to properly present myself in a business-like manner and with professionalism. Lindsay, another student from ALES 204 shares a similar view in her blog. 


I do have concerns over displaying my personal information to the public.  Concerns of identity theft are rampant on the internet and one has to be careful when putting too much personal information on-line.  Not all those viewing your page are trustworthy.  I have read a few articles where information or photos were taken from a Facebook page and re-used to discredit the person, or for more serious offences.  Although one would like to believe the information found on these pages is worthwhile, can you always believe it?  There is no proof to verify the information, but to interview the prospective employee.

Hello Everyone!

Szabo, M. (2011). Jet and Nicole Briggs [Photograph].

My name is Nicole Briggs. I come from the small town of Gibbons, Alberta. Agriculture has always been a large part of my life. I spent the first 14 years of my life living on and helping out with the family dairy farm. Currently, I live on a ranch where our family raises Quarter Horses, Paints and longhorn cattle. I spent 9 years in the equine project of the 4-H program. Throughout my years in 4-H I found a love for speaking.  In 2010, I was the Provincial 4-H Presentations Champion. I now travel around the area giving workshops to clubs about both public speaking and presentations.

Rodeo has also been a large part of my life and by large part; I mean practically my entire life! I was a member of the Alberta High School Rodeo Association for 4 years. My passion for speaking gave me the opportunity to compete for the Alberta High School Rodeo Queen title in 2008. I represented Alberta at the world’s largest rodeo, the National High School Finals Rodeo, in Farmington, New Mexico. I competed against 45 other rodeo queens from throughout the United States, Canada and Australia, where I placed in the top ten. This competition consisted of speeches, personal interviews and impromptu questions.  I then travelled throughout North America representing Alberta and the sport of rodeo, giving workshops and speaking to people throughout my travels. 

I am currently in my second year at the University of Alberta taking a Bachelor of Science in Agriculture. I hope to attend Veterinary School at the University of Calgary or the Western College of Veterinary Medicine. Communication will play an extremely important role in this profession.  Having the ability to communicate to different types of people will be one the most important aspects. Also, the use of social media and the internet is needed in order to research new scientific articles and journals in order to stay up-to-date with the current medical procedures and discoveries. It can also be used to easily communicate ideas with other people within the profession.

I hope to be able to use what I learn in the ALES 204 course in my profession and also apply it to what I am currently involved in. At the moment, I am the Canadian Intercollegiate Rodeo Association Finals Coordinator. This job involves helping organize the Canadian National College Finals Rodeo in Edmonton, Alberta at the end of March. As an association, we are trying to use social media (Facebook and Twitter) to get information out to the public and the members about upcoming events. The association uses a website but we are finding that information can be accessed quicker by the members using social media sites. By frequently using Twitter and Blogger in this class, I am excited to learn more and help the association by using social media and the internet. I look forward to what I will learn this semester during the ALES 204 (Communication Theory and Practice) class.

Copeman, M. (2011). Canadian National College Finals Rodeo Breakaway N. Briggs [Photograph].  

To see what other ALES 204 students have to say visit their blog.