#GENCHAT is coming! #GENCHAT is coming!

 

Are you ready? This is going to be good, you do not want to miss out!

The theme for the first #GENCHAT is “Starting your 2013 research in the right way.” Are you ready to learn via the awesome power of Twitter? Here are a few simple steps to make sure you are “good to go.”

1. If you do not already have a Twitter account, you will need one. It is free, and you can sign up at www.twitter.com. Learn the basics of the system before 25 Jan. There are many great tutorials and other tools to help you. If you can’t figure it out, drop me an email, and I can help you.
2. Decide if you are going to use a site like TweetDeck, HootSuite, TwitterFall or TweetGrid to follow and participate in the chat. Get into that a couple days in advance, so you can see how to use it before #genchat actually starts.
3. On the appropriate day and time, log into your preferred site (see #2) and follow the hashtag #genchat. We’ll be there!
4. Follow the hosts: @cornandcotton, @ancestryjourney and/or @tracingmyfamily.

A few other tips…

• It’s great to let other folks know you will be participating, even the hosts! We would love to hear from you before hand.
• Re-tweeting during the chat is a great way to show your agreement with a statement, or reinforce an idea that has been expressed.
• With many participants, Twitter chats can be lively and fast! Don’t worry if you miss something, we will be putting out summaries and other tools in the days that follow. You can also search for #genchat on Twitter, and get all of the posts using that hashtag.

#GENCHAT is a community event, and we are hoping for interaction from around the globe. If you have something to contribute to the conversation, please do so, but keep in mind that the central idea here is collaboration. We are hoping to learn from each other. We are hoping that although a few prompts may be necessary, the conversation will naturally flow and the chat will turn into a helpful event for all participants.
To put it simply, come ready to learn AND to teach. We can all help each other.

If you have any questions, please email me or comment below.

The full schedule for 2013 is available exclusively on the Conference Keeper website. You can also download a badge to use on your own website or blog and help spread the word about #genchat!

My three focus words for 2013 are Clarification, Collaboration and Courage. #GENCHAT is one way in which I can collaborate with genealogists and family historians around the world, and I'm excited for it to begin. Join us!