Skip to main content

This week's thank you: The Connector

Bridge by Mariano Martel, from Flickr CC BY NC


It was one of those huge conference parties. The kind where the free drink tickets draw the cost-conscious and the alcohol-minded. It was an effort in networking. One of those torturous skills that, if you aren't born knowing how to do it, the only way to get better is by doing more of it. Which basically meant my fake smile did not disguise the eyes of a cornered badger.

One person took pity on me. Either he recognized the look of barely concealed terror or he was just being polite, I'm not sure. He introduced himself as Steve, a game-design teacher at a middle school in New Jersey. Steve never came off as creepy, the way I often do when I introduce myself for the first time. He seemed genuinely interested in what I did and the company I worked for. And when the conversation naturally lulled, we exchanged business cards and went our separate ways like it was no big deal.

Two years, many Twitter chats and in-person hugs later, I realize now that Steve doesn't know a stranger. He makes everyone feel welcome. Whether he's moderating a discussion on Twitter or leading introductions in a meet-up he coordinated, Steve is sincere and friendly. He is having fun learning from the people he has surrounded himself with.

At that same conference where I stood against the wall, equally wishing someone would talk to me while hoping no one would notice me, Steve and a friend of his, Katya, came up with the idea of #EdTechBridge, a Twitter chat connecting educators with EdTech developers. They saw a need for there to be more conversation between the two groups to create the tools that classrooms really needed, and not just what a software developer thought was needed. It also allowed EdTech companies to find teachers who would be willing to try out platforms and give feedback.

This is what Steve does. He facilitates the conversation. He brings people in to the group. He creates the space for introductions. He adds his perspective and copious amounts of experience in beta testing, design and good teaching. But most importantly, he becomes the bridge that connects us.

The world needs more people like Steve.
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Infographic: Presentation Tools for Sharing an Idea

I put together this infographic as part of an internal training program I do for our account managers each month called "What in the EdTech". The account managers selected topics from a list of about 20 that they wanted to learn about. This is the fourth in the series, and after this one, we'll do another survey to see what else they want to learn about. Previous sessions included: Khan Academy ( and their results ), Gamification/Game-based Learning and 3D Printing .
Post a Comment
Read more

Unchosen: The Graduation Invite

Sometimes I'm really bad at predicting which design a customer is going to choose. And that leaves me with some of my favorite designs unclaimed. I'm going to start highlighting some unclaimed designs here in the blog, as well as some of my favorite designs that were chosen. I'm pretty proud of my concoctions, and I want to show them off! I've been doing a lot of invitations lately, and they are a lot of fun. I'm sticking to the small, intimate parties (no Bridezillas here, please) like bachelorette and graduation parties. My customers have great ideas for themed parties and you just can't find invitations at Target for the "She Got Knocked Up" baby shower. Okay, I haven't done that one yet, but I bet it would be a blast! This unchosen design came from a recent graduation party invitation. The soon-to-be alma mater's colors were green and gold, and the graduate is a big fan of pink. That's where the color scheme came from. Because it was a ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Finding Out How Similar We All Really Are

Story by Rossyyume Flickr CC BY NC ND I love stories. Especially people's stories. The stories they've created. The stories that created them. Stories were a big part of why I majored in Journalism. It was an excuse to listen to people tell their stories. As a 19-year-old soon-to-be Journalism student, my goal was to live in a tiny apartment with five cats and interview interesting people all day. And while it's probably best for everyone -- including the cats -- that the career muses didn't send me down that path, I am still drawn to the experiences of others and how they share those memories and ideas. It's fascinating to me that we now have so many ways to tell stories -- ours and others. So many ways to document our lives, the lives of the people we know and the people we pretend to be. With each story comes a chance to put ourselves in someone else's shoes. In doing so, we get a little more understanding of how similar we all are. Here are a few ...
Post a Comment
Read more