I’ve heard a lot of “negative nellies” (I don’t think I’ve EVER used that term before! What is the internet doing to me??) on blog posts about the DO’s and DON’T’s that newbies and/or C-Listers should do… or rather not do, to be cool online. And yeah, quite a bit of it was entertaining and some of it was informative. The latter of which is something I continue to nearly beg for ‘because I’m afraid of doing something totally faux pas, but these same posts were also a bit … down putting?
It’s awesome that I can’t explain what I felt after reading these posts. :/ All I know is that I walked away grimacing in self-doubt, so here I am trying to work it all out!
One of the posts I read (and sorry, I don’t remember which one it was, as there were a few I went through yesterday,) stated that people who call themselves Gurus are nobs… or noobs. Maybe it was both. *shrugs* And that kinda hit home ’cause I use that term on occasion. Specific occasions, but it has found a place in my online identity.
And no, I’m not going to unfriend/unfollow these people because of a differing opinion. Life would be SO BORING if all I did was agree with you, like a yes-person. I still think these people are cool, even if I’m not 100% in-line with their ideas, and I’d probably still be a little awe-inspired if I met them in real life, but I have to have my say…
Hello! My name is Aeryn Lynne, and I am a Technologies Guru.
What does the word “Guru” mean, other than to add extra sparkle on a business card?
In a non-spiritual manner, it simply means teacher. And this is an avenue that I sometimes wish I took while trying to figure out that ultimate question: “What do I want to be when I grow up?” Other answers included: astronaut, prime minister (small person, big ambitions), doctor, and world-renowned figure skating coach.
Why didn’t I become a teacher? Well… the idea of teaching 30 odd kids on a daily basis kinda rattles my nerve to the point of adding an extra five pounds to my waist a la stress and, why yes, that thought just added another grey hair to my ever increasing collection (I need hair dye in a box, STAT! Blue thunder? Thanks ever so much for that rec, BB!)
So I had to put that notion into the no-go box.
To explain my audacity of using the term Guru: I have a HUGE cache of technical knowledge that I have been building ever since I was five. I’ve always loved tech, and I’ve always loved imparting that information to others who are in need of a little guidance (yes, even when I was five.)
So, hello again. You might see where I’m going with this.
The whole “self-professed” bit? None of my friends are uber-geek enough to call me a guru. I’ve instead been called, “Expert”, “Tech Support” (from my MOM, fcol.), “Know It All” (my DAD, I swear they love me!), “Tootsie-Pop” (my DH, he really does love me!), “The One That’s Really Smart with Computers” (various friends.), but no “Guru”.
So where do I get off calling myself a Guru? Well, I hadn’t really started that until I landed on Twitter. You see, Twitter has this thing about making catchy 160 character max profiles so that when I follow people, I could make a quick bid to see if that person will follow me back.
The letters G-U-R-U are the shortest length of characters to say, “I love all things tech and am willing to impart that information to you on my blog, so click the link below!” (Which is 108 characters on its own! I’d only have enough room to add my name after that, and then where would I place my fashionista cred?)
And yes, I could have stated “IT Guru”, but to be honest, I hate the letters I-T. The term Information Technology a bit oxymoronish to me.
Anyway, this is my first post for the NaBloPoMo of Glorious Madness post! Where I had no idea what I was going to talk about until three minutes before I started typing. The theory is that I will write better posts at the end of this month through constant experience.
Wanna grade me on a 10 point scale? Out of 5 stars? Thumbs up?
