Hi. My name is Phylise Banner. I'm the director of online teaching and learning at Union Graduate College. I'm here to talk about developing digital artifacts in your capstone course here. So you've spent time in these courses developing a narrative structure which explores the things that differentiate you from the rest of the market and why you would want to differentiate yourself. Well, now it's time to showcase this narrative through the use of digital artifacts. So to start, think about what an artifact is. It's something which we save which reminds us of a story we can share. Think about the things you keep from vacations. Think about the things you keep from your childhood and what meaning it holds for you perhaps when you touch it again or share it with someone else. So we hold on to and share our artifacts throughout our lives in our personal lives and in our professional lives. So in your professional life what would an artifact look like? Well, think about your resume, something as simple as a resume as a professional artifact, a jumping-off place to start telling your stories, to start sharing and promoting yourself in the professional arena. So the stories, the sharing, the telling, and the listening is what it's all about. So I throw some questions at you. Who are you? What is your story? Why have you chosen to tell me the things that you're telling me? And why should I listen? And when are you going to listen to me? So I teach digital storytelling and work with my students to answer each one of these questions from within the stories they create. And I challenge you to do the same thing. For each of your stories, there is a beginning, a middle, and an end. So how does this translate into crafting digital artifacts to promote our skills to prospective employers and colleagues? Let's start with the beginning. So, once upon a time, it seems quaint and simple, but that little phrase holds so much. Once upon a time implies a history of some sort. When you're crafting your professional narrative, think carefully about where you want to start. Many of us think back years and years to start our stories, but there's nothing wrong with starting right now, here and now. I'm here. This is who I am. This is what I do best, etc. The important thing is that you have a beginning, some moment, any moment in time that you are choosing to start with. From there you can move forward. So think about you start from ten years ago and tell your story moving forward. Or you start right now and tell your story looking backwards, or in and out of a hub and spoke. I am here, I've done this. I've done this over here. I can also do this. Or thinking about spiraling around a main theme, starting at the beginning and talking about how you become robust, how you became where you are now. Think about constructing a visual representation of this framework as you begin your narrative. So what would moving forward look like visually? It's a timeline. It could be a timeline. You start and you go forward in progression. What would moving backward look like? Again, could it be a timeline? Or either one of these could be some sort of circle, right, starting at the beginning and going all the way around in a circle, starting at the end and going all the way around in a circle. What would hub and spoke look like, coming in and out? So by visualizing what this story line is, what your beginning is in that pathway is, it makes it easier for you to start constructing because the beginning is the easy part. The next part is designing and constructing. So when designing and developing your digital artifact, you need to consider the pathways of interaction for your intended audience. How do you want them to interact with your story? The middle becomes more than just a narrative, more than just content. It becomes an experience. An effective personal promotion needs to be an engaging, interacting experience for your intended audience. You've started them of with once upon a time. And now, you need to lead them somewhere. When talking about designing experiences in the digital arena when you're doing a professional portfolio piece, when you're doing a personal portfolio piece, whether it's social media, a blog, a website, whatever it is, whenever I'm talking about designing experiences, I use the metaphor of a new house that you've designed, built, and furnished. So, think about your new house. It's time to have folks over and you have a few choices. You can greet them at the front door, guide them through the house explaining a few things as you go along and answering questions when they're asked. Talk about the piece of marble that you've got on your countertop. That's beautiful. Where did it come from? Why did you choose it? Moving from room to room together, having a conversation about specific items within your house. Your other option at the other end of the spectrum, you can leave the front door open to this new house and let people come in and poke around on their own. So think about these two different experiences, these two ends of the spectrum, and how they might translate into the experience of your digital presence, of your digital, personal promotion in this space. So as you're working on your digital artifacts, think about where you want your audience to stop and ask you questions. Where and how will they be able to interact with you? What content, I say furniture, what content are you putting in place, talking about your work history, talking about the things you've learned along the way? What content will you be putting in place, and what content will you enable others to contribute, to add to that space, to bring along and put and leave in that house? You'll need to contextualize everything in this house, in this digital artifact that you built. Why did you buy that painting on the wall? What does it say about you personally? Imagine sharing more than where you worked, what you've accomplished, the year you were promoted. Imagine sharing what you learned at that job, who you mentored, what it meant to you. Those are the stories that will stand you apart and that's all part of the context. When it's time to wrap up your story, be careful not to close the door of that house without saying goodbye and giving your visitors a chance to wave back at you, to find out when they can come visit again, and where they can find you when you're not home. What you want to focus on primarily is sharing the story of who you are, a starting point, a pathway to your journey, context around your experiences, and opportunities for your market audience to interact and engage with you in that story. And thanks. Find a way to thank that audience for stopping by, for experiencing your artifact, for experiencing your narrative, and getting to know your excellence. Thank you.
