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Learning the Ropes

By Sarah Robbins posted Apr 08, 2016 11:04

  

Now that I have been working for eConverse for a month, I have a confession to make: before starting at eConverse, I had never written a blog post before. Yup. I'm that new to all of this. So if any of you are like me and have found yourselves in this mysterious world of social media and are still figuring it out, let me take this opportunity to share some of the habits and tactics I've quickly been developing that are helping me navigate through my new work with eConverse.

  1. Ask Questions: I'm sure you've probably heard some super confident and "successful" member of your friend group boast how they will "fake it until they make it," pretending like they know what they are doing convincingly enough that eventually they learn the job through a long process of trial-and-error. Well, that's all fine and good for those content to risk mistakes and embarrassment at work, but that's never been my style (ever one to err on the side of professionalism). If there is one piece of advice that I can confidently share, it's to ask questions. No one, including myself, is suffering from the delusion that I know how to do everything. There is so much that I still have to learn about building user-friendly websites, and the only way I am going to get better at it is if I continue to seek clarification along the way. I would rather take 30 seconds of my boss's time for her to explain a task to me, than for her to take 30 minutes of her time correcting the mistake I made when I spun off in the wrong direction. If you look at it this way, its simply a case of time management: clarification is a lot quicker than correction.
  2. The Internet is Your Friend: It is so great to know that if there is something I can't seem to figure out, the internet knows how to do it. You can literally YouTube the answer to anything. Somewhere, someone has already encountered the problem I am dealing with and have uploaded an instructional video online to save me time and frustration. Lucky for me, eConverse is super prepared for the questions I might have. Working with Higher Logic to build webpages, Higher Logic has a comprehensive database of resources on how to operate their software, including instructional video tutorials lead by members of Higher Logic. Referring to these videos when working on sites not only saves me time, but also cuts down the number of questions I end up asking my boss. Definitely a win-win.
  3. Make Your Own Resources: Nobody's notes will make more sense than your own notes, so write them down. It might seem like taking notes is reserved only for students, but having your own short-hand to refer to while working is incredibly reassuring. As I have spent more time tinkering with the navigation and content of webpages, there are certain processes I must repeatedly perform, and so I make concise step-by-step notes for myself to refer to when working. Sometimes I simply take a screenshot of my work as a visual reference for later. Maybe you like to create bookmark files on your browser for the sites you use regularly. Whatever works best for you, do it and save it in an organized file on your computer. It's a serious time saver and anxiety-killer. 
  4. Practice: When I have a break while I'm working, or I'm taking my lunch and am sitting at my desk, I devote a few short minutes to going over something that I tripped up on earlier in the day. Eventually through repetition, I know that confusing task will cease to be confusing (and the sooner the better, because I have to do it all the time!)
  5. There Is Time: I am guilty of creating pressure on myself when I think that mastering something ASAP is the only way to get things done, but how often does that actually help me? Now I'm not saying that procrastination is ever the answer, but knowing that things take time can be comforting. If something doesn't make sense to you right away, refer to your resources, ask questions, and step away from it for awhile. With practise, whatever the issue is will become like second-nature. And thank goodness, because before you know it a new confusion will come to take the old confusion's place. I guess the point I'm making is don't create more stress for yourself by rushing to master new challenges. There is time, and you will need it.

So if you are like me and have found your first venture into social media strange and unusual, I hope these musings will be of help to you. There are so many resources online for reference that whatever your questions or frustrations, you can easily find an answer. 

 Happy practicing! 

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