Well I was ahead of myself for Thing 2 as I’d already registered my blog on the CPD23 site but I’m now behind as I haven’t got around to blogging about it until now – and Thing 3 is already up! I already read a few blogs regularly but those tend to be mainly from those I’ve found through Twitter and many are librarians working in a similar sector to myself so I was hoping to use this firstly as an opportunity to discover some new blogs beyond my own sector and to inspire me to comment more on blogs when I’ve read them. I do this occasionally but often slip back into the habit of just lurking even when I have something to say.
Browsing the CPD23 Delicious page, like many others, I was mainly looking at any blogs that stood out by having an interesting/unusual name but, after browsing some of the blogs from academic librarians, I did what I set out to do and explored some of the tags for other library and information sectors; looking at public, government and corporate libraries. I must admit I didn’t leave any comments this time – too much pressure – but I will keep looking at more of the CPD23 blogs as the ‘things’ go on and I’m sure I’ll be able to chip in at some point!
Coincidentally, the first blog from someone working in public libraries that I happened to click on turned out to be from someone at the same place I used to work and both people who had left comments work at the same place I do now! Small world.
Like so many other library and information professionals, over the next 16 weeks I’ll be taking part in the 23 Things for Professional Development programme, or CPD23. 
CPD23 is a self-directed course covering a range of online and offline tools to aid personal and professional development. I’m really keen to try out some new tools and to learn more about some familiar ones too.
As I’m starting on my Chartership I’m grabbing every chance for CPD I can get. Also, as part of Chartership I’m trying to get into the habit of reflective practice and my blog will be my main tool for recording my thoughts and reflecting on my experiences. I’ve decided to stick with this blog for CPD23 as I like the WordPress platform and I’m aware that this blog is often somewhat neglected (either through lack of time or lack of things to write about). Since I set it up in the aftermath of last year’s New Professionals’ Conference, my posts have been at best sporadic, so I’m hoping to get into the habit of posting more regularly.
The weeks I’m looking forward to mostly are:
Week 12: I’m really keen to get the hang of Prezi, as I’ve seen some great presentations created by others using this, and many of the other ‘things’ in this week are tools I’ve not used or even heard of before
Week 15: Promoting yourself in job applications and at interviews – I’m always keen to get tips and hear new ideas in this area!
All of the ‘things’ will be really useful to me though so I’m just hoping to learn loads of new stuff. Now, time to start on Thing 2: Investigate some other blogs…
