I had previously Googled myself but never while being signed out of all accounts. I have always tried to keep a low digital profile and to that end I was satisfied with what I discovered in my search for myself today. Not much. The little that I did find was on the second or third search page in many cases. I found it interesting that the link to this blog was already present on a couple of web browsers (neither of them Google).
I have always been careful about how I represent myself online. I have accomplished this by contributing little and making all accounts as private as possible. I have practiced self-censorship in the past and still do in the present. Again, I have accomplished this by avoiding a comment in the first place rather than posting something which needs to be carefully crafted or later removed. It has been my practice so far to use my voice in person to advocate, demonstrate or persuade. As I stated in a previous post, important elements of communication stem from voice tone and body language. When trying to be understood fully, it has been my concern that to speak about something really important to a mass (social media) audience, I could risk having something lost in translation when limited completely to print.
Another area of caution/censorship is around my family. I may comment about “the boy” rather than using my son’s name. I am always aware of how I share and use information about my children on the internet. While it is great for grandparents to see birthday pictures on a private facebook page, it is not great for picture of my children to be accessible to anyone. Beyond safety, my children’s personal privacy rights must be considered. My daughter occasionally asks when we take a picture, “will that be posted?” We are learning that when it comes to our children, their life is theirs to share.
I have begun to have my thinking challenged by this course. I am seeing the benefit of building an active, robust digital footprint. This more developed digital stance may provide a stronger personal security than trying to remain obscure. I like Kris Shaffer’s comments on this topic. I find myself agreeing with and internalizing the concept of deliberate digital identity. I like the idea that when people look for us on the internet they find our “best content” and that as Chris Long states, it is found early and often .
If I was to identify with one of the “selves” referenced by Bonnie stewart, I think The Asynchronous Self is the best match. I am not sure if it is from my father talking about “kids these days” or an awareness of changing social convention, but I am at this point dissatisfied with the degree to which digital influence easily interrupts f2f interaction. If I am having a conversation with someone it is because I have chosen to give that person my attention and it is my hope that I have the diligence for that to be my full attention. A conversation doesn’t need to be interrupted just because something went ding. Having said that, there is a time and a place for……
As to the web search activity to find myself in the digital universe, here are the results. There are definitely a lot of Ryan Morrows out there. Most of us are still alive, many of us have professional careers, some are musical, and at least one of us brews beer for a living. A biography of myself based on the information that I found across several different browsers would look something like this.
Ryan Morrow is the Principal at Cascade Christian School in Chilliwack, BC. He has accounts for both LinkedIn and Twitter and possibly Facebook and Instagram as well but you will not find evidence of them on the web. Ryan is interested in Christian education, leadership, and has an interest in sports. Ryan cheers for Canada.
It appears that Ryan is up to a new pursuit in his life and has written an article where he chronicles his development of creating a new blog related to TWU.
If you would like to get to know Ryan more thoroughly you will have to drive to Chilliwack and speak to him in person as the remaining details of his life have not been made public.
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