Eternal life online? Making your mark on the world online and forever

Shocked. Unbelief. Sad. Honored to have known him.

I lost a friend last week, Terrence Wing. His death was unexpected and, for earthly standards, before his time. It also “hit home” because Terrence was a friend my age, busy with a business and family. He had big plans and was always working hard to make those ideas a reality. Full of energy and life: now suddenly gone.
For some, the call to leave our earthly home brings us eternal life…but human memories fade and our loved ones left behind have only stories, photos, and perhaps a video to remember us. For others, the ability to substantially impact and change the lives of others in a positive way leaves the Earth a better place than when we entered it. With the use of Internet and social media networks, one’s impact can be far-reaching and everlasting. Terrence will have eternal life online, which is where he impacted and influenced so many. Since his passing last week on December 1st, the hashtag #TerrenceWing has appeared in 620 posts on Twitter, and I am certainly not the first to reflect on his impact to my life and the training and development community (several others have focused their blogs this week on Terrence). His mark was made on the learning community as well as a broader audience; a Google search of Terrence Wing results in over 12,000 hits, including: blogs, summaries of some of his presentations, and YouTube videos. Workplace Learning Professionals will continue to learn from these archives for years to come.
Terrence served the training and development community. He worked on the ASTD International Conference Planning Advisory Committee for the past two years. His experience and insight helped identify top presenters and key subject areas for the conference. Linda David said, “His knowledge of social media was a bonus and he freely offered advice and how-to's to all of us on how to leverage these tools.” His love for technology and how it can be used in learning was used as he also served on the ASTD TechKnowledge Conference Planning Advisory Committee, which influences the 2012 conference program. His proposal review and selection responsibilities were Emerging Technologies and Platforms & Tools.

Terrence shared his knowledge and expertise freely with colleagues, both locally and nationally. Terrence first spoke for ASTD at the 2011 TechKnowledge conference on the topic of “Twitter for the Learning Professional.” He also spoke that year at the International Conference on the same topic, as well as offering a preconference workshop on “ISD 2.0: Retooling Instructional Design for a Socialized Workforce.” He was scheduled to speak at both conferences in 2012 on “Navigating the Social Learning Roadmap” and” ISD 2.0: The Fusion of Semantic Tech and ISD.”He also spoke at ASTD chapter events on a range of social media topics. His sharing and collaboration extended to regular #elearnchats on Twitter and JustinTV, writing for eLearning Guild’s Learning Solutions Magazine, and his own blog for LiquidLearn. In more informal settings, Terrence was always willing to share his ideas and opinions with others, and with a smile. His presence and warmth always made you feel at ease; he often mentored others using his charisma and expertise to embody the ideals of ASTD: “making the world better”.

I met Terrence several years ago through my involvement with ASTD. A fellow advocate for social media and its uses in training, we often tweeted back-and-forth about the latest T&D articles or news. We always had something to talk about, and often it was online…even though we both live in the Los Angeles area. With travel, our schedules often conflicted so face-to-face meetings for coffee or lunch were limited.

I was able to collaborate with Terrence on multiple projects, including earlier this year when we both participated virtually via Twitter in a learning event called ("Blend Me") for the Sacramento ASTD Chapter in May. He served on the national committee for Social Media, which I chaired. As a committee member, he helped in the development and execution of our monthly Twitter #ASTDChapters chats, featuring topics relevant to chapter leaders and members of the ASTD community.
As the National Advisors for Chapters, I had the opportunity to work with Terrence through his local chapter of ASTD (Los Angeles), where he was President-Elect. He was a leader who stood up for his beliefs with integrity and respect. He embodied the ideals of “servant leader”. He was always willing to share his expertise about social media, technology, and training to anyone who wanted to learn. His big ideas and zeal for life made him an inspiration to others.

Terrence was honored in a tribute on the #elearnchat, on JustinTV; the archive can be viewed at http://www.justin.tv/relatecorp/b/301949476 . ASTD-LA is accepting comments remembering Terrence on their webpage: http://www.astdla.org/Terrence?mode=MessageList&eid=764240&mlpg=2 Terrence influenced many through his life, and was respected by the learning community as a leader, a visionary, and a friend. You will be missed, Terrence.

Mad dash to learn & change: Social media is keeping it fresh

I am headed to Washington DC this week to speak to learning professionals about social media and how to use it effectively in their strategy. Social media has played a dominant role in how we do business for several years; it’s not a fad with fifteen minutes of fame…Social media has changed forever the way we interact, do business, and socialize. In fact, Americans spend 23% of their time on social networks . Additionally, mobile users increased by 62% in 2011 .
But people are always complaining about changes made to their technology and networks; and it seems that the changes are constant. I just received notice via email this afternoon that Hootsuite acquired Geotoko and is adding functionality to its tools for users, including: improved analytics, added functionality for LinkedIn Company pages, and a new Tweet trending feature via acquisition of “What the Trend”.
Additionally, Facebook seems to be changing all the time. Recent changes incited near riots for many users who were infuriated by the new look and features of Facebook. Status updates are now on the “Ticker Bar” on the right side of your page. Why do people dislike this so? I am glad trivialities that clogged my News Feed, like Farmville posts from friends, are on the Ticker now. Other changes included adding a Polling option, threading comments for multiple posts of the same link, and adding lists to organize your friends (a response to Google+ circles).
Are these truly improvements, or just irritation? Why are we so resistant to change? In a fast-paced world that is constantly in a state of flux, why aren’t we responding more positively to these changes around us? Aren’t we supposed to be flexible? I would expect learning professionals to be receptive to changes, especially as improvements make our actions more efficient or effective.
The changes will continue, so long as there is competition in the market to drive improvements in products and services. It is our role as learning professionals to lead our organizations and keep employees up-to-date about technology and tools that make information sharing and learning easier, more collaborative, and more efficient. As we embrace technology tools, we improve the communication and relationships in our organizations.