Reflections on Slack

I remember the first time I learned about Slack; it was my first year as a Graduate Supervisor in Residential Life at Indiana University. I worked alongside my direct supervisor in co-supervising an undergraduate staff of nine resident assistants (RA's). At the time of staff training, we decided on a platform that could serve as mass communication for the team. We agreed on Slack because there was the option to have multiple channels to engage in different topics. However, this felt far more complicated than a GroupMe chat. After a few failed attempts with Slack, we decided to move forward and not use it as our primary communication forum. I had mixed feelings about Slack. I did not understand any of the other features, so I did not feel I would return to using Slack. We were introduced to Slack in our week 9 module, and I considered giving Slack another try. I checked Slack's website to see if there were any changes, but I did not see any new features or changes. I chose to not re-engage with Slack because I am not a major fan. I leave this blog still feeling optimistic. I am open to learning more about how others utilize Slack and its benefits. Do you use Slack? If so, what is the primary purpose? Is Slack your preferred mass communication platform?

Not all technology and social and digital media platforms are for everyone; choosing what works best for you is essential. I am learning that more through the help of this class!

Comments

Unplug Time!

I have always loved social media and my relationship with digital devices and platforms. However, it has been an adjustment throughout this course. EME 6414 has required me to be far more engaged on social media, which is okay, but I should have thought about how tired I could be from constantly trying to keep up and engage with multiple aspects of the online world. We are surrounded by and consumed by digital media in our everyday lives. The digital detox challenge could not have come at a better time; this challenge helped me take a break from everything I have felt overwhelmed by. The biggest challenge for this particular #EME6414 challenge was that I experienced moments where I felt like I missed out on information that could be beneficial to me in the real and digital world. I began with silencing notifications of the various social media apps I use daily, and after completing that, I decided to put my phone on do not disturb (DND). The DND feature on iPhones has been life-chang

Am I missing SOMETHING? Trying to be in all spaces at once

Class pulse check! I have been wondering if others have felt similar feelings that I have when it comes to missing some of the challenge opportunities or missing commenting and exploring other classmates' blogs, etc. I often reflect at the end of each week and think about ways to improve for the following week. Some weeks have improved, but I still need to overcome the obstacle of missing something! I offer myself grace in this situation as I engage a lot and in multiple contexts, but I am still missing something. I don't know if that ever goes away because it is not humanly possible to be at all places (even online spaces) at once. What do you do when you feel you have "missed" something? Do you set new goals for the following week? Do you have accountable partners? Do you have reminders? In addition to these probing questions, how do you handle the moments when you don't meet the goals you had set for the week? I am all for wanting to engage and engage in sev

Twitter Challenge Reflections! #SumItSunday Pt. 2

Overall this week was one of my favorites! I was able to participate and engage in multiple challenges, and the best challenge of them all was on Twitter. Twitter has become the social media app I constantly use, and I love the direction that my personal Twitter is evolving with a mix of my doctoral identity and leadership educator identity while also sharing the highs and lows of my experience. I discuss the joys of teaching, presenting, and doing research with outstanding faculty; while sharing updates about my life and the specific day I might have had, whether good or bad. I want to continue to be authentic when engaging in higher education. I want individuals to always feel comfortable speaking with me and knowing that I, too, am human, regardless of the level of education I might hold or even positions later on in my career. In this week's Twitter challenge, I was able to be funny with my Gif choices while also profoundly thinking about what I wanted to share for the challe

Johnnie Allen Jr.

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