Image Source: http://www.thepursuitaesthetic.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/02/thank-you.jpg

David Truss writes a post that echoes my own feelings today after a marathon development session that began at 7:00 AM this morning (Sunday) and is still ongoing at 11:30 PM tonight:

How do you explain that a simple request on Twitter leads to a flurry of emails and a list of great examples of effective use of digital tools for learning that I never could have found on my own?….How do we show teachers the value of developing a PLN?

What I sense is troubling David is the same thing that I endured as I prepared my wikispace for not one, not two, but three conferences today! Two examples of Wiki Angels, representative of the wonderful people in my personal learning network (which would be too numerous to thank at this time except as a group!):

Example #1: Amanda Hefner
At around 10:00 PM, as I was stumbling around with links, I turned on Skype (which I seldom do because I’ll be tempted to answer a call or make one) as a way to procrastinate and see what folks are up to. To my amazement, I had a random IM from Amanda Hefner, who remarked on my Skype outgoing status message about Moodling.

Since I’m presenting at SOSCON09 next week–4 workshops about Moodle, what was I thinking–I realized that I still didn’t have a great handout on wikis in Moodle. Everyone uses Wikispaces (uh, I do) or PBWorks or whatever, but not wikis in Moodle.

Amanda, when she learned of my need for a handout, was kind enough to volunteer to adapt one of her’s for me. She saved me hours of work.

Example #2: Vicki Davis
As I was looking at beefing up my offerings on wikis, I remembered the guru of wikis, Vicki. (and, of course, I’m also going to reference Stephanie Sandifer’s book on Wikified Schools).

I noticed Vicki was in Gmail chat, so I shared my need with her, and she reminded me of her K-12 OnlineConference presentation (18 minutes)! Thank you, Vicki!

Some time ago, I wrote, David points out, the following:

If you fail to connect to the network of learners, you miss out on a global conversation about what you are passionate about. And missing out is a darn shame because it can save you time, energy, and increase your reach, no matter how brilliant (or not) you are. That’s a powerful idea. Smart people get smarter because they have access to the network of learners. People who are just starting out are able to learn as fast as they can to accomplish what they need to do.

A lesson I have to learn again and again is that it’s OK to reach out and tap into the network for help. I’m grateful to David for writing his blog entry at the exact same time I needed to read it.

Oh, and I’ll be posting the links to all the stuff later this week…still needs some polishing!

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Everything posted on Miguel Guhlin’s blogs/wikis are his personal opinion and do not necessarily represent the views of his employer(s) or its clients. Read Full Disclosure