Strategic Spark Consulting

Welcome back! In our previous post, What is a PLN? Your Personalized Learning System for Growth, we explored what a personal learning network (PLN) is and why it’s essential for navigating today’s complex information environment. Having established the ‘what’ and ‘why’ of PLNs, let’s now focus on the ‘how’ – building a PLN that aligns with your unique goals.

To help you get started, I’ve created a free downloadable PLN template that aligns with this post and will guide you through each step of developing your PLN. Grab your copy here.

Craft Your PLN: Start with Purpose

While many start by listing out their social networks, professional networking groups, and key contacts, I recommend identifying your PLN’s purpose. Key questions to consider are:

• What is your personal mission statement?
• What are your top three personal and professional goals?
• What is the scope of your personal and professional interests?

This framework will help you create a PLN that is relevant, engaging, and helpful. With a clearly defined mission statement, goals, and scope, you’ll be able to:

• Streamline your networking efforts.
• Identify the right people who align with your goals.
• Curate information based on your interests (while filtering out the rest).
• Cultivate a helpful and rewarding learning journey.

Your PLN’s North Star: Define Your Mission

Creating a mission statement for your PLN will guide your actions and decisions within your network. If you need help identifying your mission, consider the following:

• What do you want to achieve with your PLN?
• Who do you want to connect with?
• How do you want to share knowledge and resources?

The answers to these questions will serve as your PLN’s guiding principles and set the tone for your PLN. Consider this example: 

Fuel Your Growth with Personal and Professional Goals

A common approach when developing a new PLN is focusing just on professional goals. While there’s nothing wrong with that, the PLN has the potential to support our whole being, fostering balance and well-being in our lives. To make your PLN more interesting, consider weaving in some personal goals in addition to your professional goals. 

Identifying your professional and personal goals provides a clear roadmap, helping you track your progress and stay motivated. It will also help your PLN identify the opportunities that will help you achieve these goals. Clarify your PLN goals with the following inquiries:

• What specific skills do you want to develop? 
• What knowledge do you want to gain? 

Examples from my PLN 

Professional Goals

• Evolve with AI advancements in communication and storytelling strategies
• Identify and learn the necessary skills for building a successful consulting business
• Expand my professional engagement and influence in my community 
• Find a mentor; be a mentor.

Personal Goals 

• How to grow a thriving herbal garden 
• Meditation and wellness – how to achieve my best health after 50 

Focus Your Network: Define Your Scope for Success

Defining the scope of your PLN prevents you from becoming overwhelmed and allows you to concentrate on the areas that truly matter to you.

• What areas do you want to expand your knowledge in?
• What knowledge can you share and contribute to the conversation about?
• What personal interests do you want to explore with others?

Identifying your PLN’s scope keeps your PLN uncluttered and focused on your end goal.

Examples of scope for a PLN

• Industry trends and best practices.
• Leadership and management.
• Technology and digital transformation.
• Personal hobbies and interests.

Ignite Your PLN: The 4 Cs of Active Engagement

Engagement is key! Your PLN is a tool you contribute to in a consistent, nurturing way so that content and leads are generated for you. Consider the following 4Cs to ensure your PLN is actively working:

• Connect: Reach out to new people with diverse perspectives. Building connections is the foundation of your PLN.
• Contribute: Strengthen and grow your networking by sharing your knowledge and insights.
• Converse: Engage in discussions, share your expertise, learn something new, and collaborate with others to foster deeper learning.
• Curate: Collect and organize valuable resources. A well-structured PLN will manage your network and resources for easy retrieval and engagement.

The more you put into your PLN, the more outcomes it will produce for you.

Equip Your PLN: Essential Tools and Platforms

Selecting the right platforms and tools is essential for efficient management and engagement of your PLN. We will discuss the management of your PLN in the next post, but here are some of my favorite platforms and tools for managing and engaging with my PLN.

Platforms

LinkedIn, X, BlueSky, Facebook Groups, industry forums, conferences, online communities. These help you interact with your network.

Examples of my PLN platforms and how I use them: 

• Local and National Conferences: focused on higher ed, fundraising, nonprofits, communications, marketing, and storytelling. 
• Local associations: Chambers, networking groups. 
• LinkedIn: following influencers, engaging with my network, curating and writing LinkedIn articles, and lead generation.
• WordPress: blogs and newsletters I follow, sharing content. 
• Medium: contributing through writing, collaborating, and curating content on my scope of interests.

Tools

Note-taking apps (Evernote, OneNote), file storage (Google Drive, Dropbox), mind mapping (MindMeister), research tools (Google Scholar), and video platforms (YouTube). These tools (and others) help you curate, organize, and manage your resources.

Examples of my favorite PLN tools and how I use them: 

• Google Drive: manages my documents, organizes clients, leads, and writing ideas
• Spotify: podcast curator/manager, meditation organizer, and playlists to motivate me.
• Mindmeister: for saving my brainstorms, connecting ideas, graphics, and leads.
• Outlook – Automation and Rules): organize my emails, newsletters, opportunities (workshops, conferences, etc.), sales leads, and engagements. 

Building your Personalized Learning Network (PLN) involves more than just collecting contacts; it’s about crafting a purposeful framework that aligns with your personal and professional goals. By defining your mission, identifying key objectives, and focusing your scope, you can create a PLN that streamlines your networking efforts and fosters continuous growth and learning. Embracing the 4Cs of engagement — Connect, Contribute, Converse, and Curate — along with utilizing the right tools and platforms, will ensure your PLN will work for you.

Ready to Build Your PLN? Download Our Free ‘PLN Blueprint’ Worksheet Now!

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