About

Janet Clarey has been inquisitive since she was a little girl. Her first memory of that trait was stomping on bugs with her baby shoes just to see what would happen. That “just to see” curiosity continued through her formative years as did her yin and yang relationship with shoes.

With virtually no natural math or science skills, Janet gravitated toward writing bringing her love of inquiry and passion for written communication together.

The results from a seemingly meaningless (at the time) high school aptitude test suggested she pursue a career in journalism. That pearl of wisdom seemed like a good enough reason for her to go off to college and at seventeen she left home to study communications with a minor in beer games.

An interesting, fulfilling series of jobs over the course of thirty years has provided Janet with the depth and breadth of understanding valued in the today’s work environment where the normal mode of operation is “whatever it takes.” Remembering the correct order of condiments for making a Wendy’s cheeseburger, the proper use of flipcharts, and the ability to read – and make sense of – an abundance of information might just be the skills of a dream employee. Whatever it takes. Even if that’s a cheeseburger.

Janet is fluent in sarcasm and emoticons. She writes for blogs in a style that has been described as irreverent. In contrast, her research reports have been described as insightful, provocative, in-depth, and relevant. Janet on her writing: “I feel centered when I write. Authenticity and helpfulness are two goals I set for writing. I’m not interested in writing about what is obvious and I don’t think people are interested in reading it. I like to challenge ideas “just to see” what will happen. It’s been said helpfulness is the new currency. If it is, I hope to make others rich.”

If Janet took an aptitude test today it would probably suggest she still pursue a career in a modern day form of journalism with a minor in geekdom – a technology writer. She’s obsessed with all things shiny and new in part because she wants to walk her talk. Her latest obsession is social learning through new media. She has recently contracted with Elearning! Magazine as Technology Editor, a perfect fit, and continues to do independent research and social media education while being active in L&D social networks.

Janet has some academic cred. She has a Bachelor of Science in Communications, a Master’s in Education specializing in Instructional Design for Online Learning, and is a part-time Ph.D student of instructional design, development, & evaluation at Syracuse University.

Having enough time for her family is Janet’s most important goal so she freelances in the cloud, working from her home office in New York State.

See more about what she does and her professional profile.

Brace yourself. Here’s the big tense switch to first person.

I can help you with:

• Social learning systems design
• Social computing solutions
• Learning systems selection and implementation
• Blended learning solutions
• Motivating workshops for learning professionals
• Research and analysis
• Writing (white papers, articles, blog posts, etc.)
• Speeches, webinars, presentations, keynotes
• Custom consulting
• Online community management (Web 2.0)
• B2C social web marketing
• More about my services

About this blog…

Spinning the Social Web, is about the impact the social web has on work, learning, and life.

I blog because I’m interested in emerging technologies and tools, new instructional design models, new types of instructional content and services, and because I wanted a way to document my research and observations about workplace learning. In the 3+ years since I started writing, I’ve become more heavily involved in social learning through social media and now focus much of my work in that area.

I also started blogging because I wanted to add my voice to the blogosphere and grow professionally and personally. Quoting this post, here’s my disclaimer:

My work on blogs, articles, handbooks, and so on is an invitation to engage in conversation, not a proclamation of what I absolutely know.

I hope to help readers (and myself) make sense of all the changes in the workplace. Lurkers and contributors are welcome.

What’s up with the title “Spinning the Social Web”?

I hired a web developer for this blog. She suggested the name, “Spinning the Social Web,” when I told her what I do and what this blog would be about. I liked her suggestion but kept thinking about “spin.”

I’m sure you’d agree that “putting a spin” on something often has negative connotations. It brings to mind little white lies, perhaps to sway opinion. In a milder sense, “putting a spin” on something brought to mind public relations and bias, i.e. putting the “corporate spin” on something (like layoffs, product recalls, or some similar negative event). Spinning can also mean the manipulation of facts such as what we see in politics and political reporting. Or, simply spinning a record (soon to be an antiquated phrase ; )

I have a preference for another definition of “putting a spin” on something:

“a distinctive point of view, emphasis, or interpretation…a distinctive character or style.“

So that’s my aim.

I also can’t help but think about “Spinning a Web,” as spiders do. When you visualize a spider’s web, you can see that the social web resembles one…or, more likely, a series of spiders webs.

What is “the social web?” One current descriptor, on the Wikipedia entry for “social web,” defines it as:

…people interlinked and interacting with engaging content in a conversational and participatory manner via the Internet.

I like this graphic from Brian Solis. (Note the similarities of a spider’s web.)

And some other stuff…

I worked 20ish years in a fabric-covered cube alongside many other fabric-covered cubes. This practical experience, along with my academic work, keeps me grounded in practice while recognizing the importance of applying theory. Find out more about what I do.

I grew up in – and survived (obviously) – the 70s. ‘Nuff said.  Watch “That 70s Show” for a historical view of growing up in the 70s.

I loathe stereotypes…

…fortunately so does my husband. I’ve been married to Andy, for 20ish years. Here we are at the Empire State Building.

I also go to school. I’m a (very) part-time Ph.D. student at Syracuse University in the Instructional Design, Development, and Evaluation program. Here’s some more information about my education background.

Here’s the family…

I live in New York, the Empire State, in a small town. A  good place to call home.

Thanks for stopping by. Lurkers are welcome.

Hit some of my links so we can connect.

Contact information
jclareyATgmailDOTcom
jclareyATsyrDOTedu
Skype: janetclarey
Google Talk: jclarey
Facebook: Janet Clarey
Twitter: jclarey
LinkedIn:Janet Clarey
SecondLife: Alpha Biddle
Ning: JanetClarey