My First Five Days on Bluesky as a Professional Learning Network

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As I prepare to exit graduate school and enter the information profession proper, I've been thinking about how I will stay connected with my classmates and professors, and how I will build new connections with my colleagues across the world. I decided that building a professional learning network would best help me accomplish this goal. And so begins the story of my first five days on Bluesky.

Day 1 - Setting up

My First Steps:

• Set up my account, added my profile picture and cover image, and wrote a bio (for the first time!).
• Followed several library-related starter packs from Christian Lauersen's running list. Ended up following nearly 400 accounts just from starter packs.
• Wrote a brief introduction post after reading that you should do that before following a whole bunch of accounts (whoops).
• Almost immediately felt anxiety that this platform will suck me into mindless scrolling.
• But also, excitement at having a digital community to share the cool things I find with.

Overall, a mixed bag of emotions. 

Why Bluesky?

I never got into Twitter (X). I tried in high school, but it just never grabbed me. It's gathered such a large community though, there's gotta be something there, right?

*Looks at the thirteen items on the Criticism of X under Elon Musk Wikipedia page section*

Well, maybe not anymore. Bluesky it is.

I considered Mastadon first because of my familiarity with forums, but they had neither the numbers nor the kinds of servers I was hoping for. I hope that by growing a professional social media presence on a platform that I'm not as familiar with, I can avoid falling into familiar traps of endless scrolling. 

As far as Professional Learning Network benefits go, the rest of this post will demonstrate my focus on cognitive growth from engaging with a professional network. 

Day 2 - First Post Jitters

Today, I'm struck with the worry of posting. What sources are credible enough to share with a professional network? Is a Nature magazine article okay? What about Psychology Today? I decided to explore a little more to see what the standard is for everyone else, especially the library and museum people. This prompted me to consider how I want to build up my professional profile. What kind of content is important to me? What kind of content creators do I like to see and follow? Do I want to post about only information and literacy, or do I want to include personal passions? What about breaking news and emerging technology? How PG do I want my page to be? What overall impression do I want to leave a visitor with? These are all questions to consider for this blog as well, and it will take time to solidify the answers.

Day 3 - The Doomscroll

I've noticed that, compared to YouTube, I'm not drawn in as easily into scrolling. This may be due to unfamiliarity with the platform, but I think another aspect is the largely text-based nature of Bluesky. YouTube and Instagram are video and image based, and humans like pretty colors, especially if they also move.

A third aspect is one I mentioned in my previous post, which is that many social media platforms (including YouTube and Instagram) use carefully crafted algorithms to present you with content that will keep you on the site longer. I'm mainly reading the 'following' feed, so there is a point where I will be caught up. This is a big reason why I prefer chronological feeds, because there is a clear point where I can say "Okay, I'm done now". 

This is also a big reason why most legacy social media have switched over to an algorithm-only feed, and have reintroduced chronological feeds only in recent years.

Combining the image/video-based nature of Instagram and YouTube and the addictive design of the algorithms they use, it makes sense that a lot of content on social media is so eye catching and flashy - according to engagement research, that's what will keep people on the platform. This trend can be seen even more obviously on TikTok, where creators must grab the attention of the viewer within the first couple seconds or risked being swiped away from. 

I'm more surprised than I thought I'd be at the stark differences between Bluesky and the legacy social media I've grown accustomed to using. It's refreshing and nostalgic to see a more genuine style of post, not designed to catch the maximum amount of attention, but to authentically communicate the author's thoughts and opinions. I'll admit, this perception may be due to rose-tinted glasses and will probably change in the future. 

Day 4 - Community

I'm starting to feel more like a member of the Bluesky community. I have a small number of followers and some people that I'm starting to recognize on my feed. There's not an overwhelming amount of comments on many of the posts I see, so I feel like my voice is not lost. The relative nicheness of Bluesky is a significant factor in this. It feels less 'media' and more 'social'. I'm not only a consumer, I can be a creator as well, and actually have my content be consumed by people who are interested in it. Compared to YouTube and Instagram, the barrier to entry to content creation is lower.

However, I still haven't posted anything original since my introduction. If I had to try to tell the future, I expect that my first original skeet will be to share the publication of this very blog post.

Also, 'posts' on Bluesky are called 'skeets'. Incredible.

Day 5 - Bluesky as a Professional Learning Network

I've intentionally filled my 'following' page with librarians, archivists, educators, historians, and journalists. As a result, I've enjoyed seeing content that is directly related to information work, such as digital literacy resources. For all the reasons I've discussed above, and more that I'm sure I'll discover, Bluesky as a social media platform and as a professional learning network is a big improvement over legacy social media. I expect Bluesky will be a valuable resource both for relevant LIS news and for networking with fellow information professionals. 

Further Reading 

I've talked a lot about algorithms this week. If you're interested in learning more about how these algorithms rule social media, I've linked some additional resources below.

A Public Service Media Perspective on the Algorithmic Amplification of Cultural Content

Social Media Algorithms: How They Control What We See

Social Drivers and Algorithmic Mechanisms on Digital Media 

Signing Off

If you are here from Bluesky, welcome! I hope you'll stick around. We're gonna have some fun. 

Until next time!