I learn from books, papers, blogs and the distraction of Twitter — but above all, I learn from people, and best of all face-to-face. The natural energy of in-person conversations makes me happy in a way digital discussion doesn’t quite match. After setting up the IDeL group in Australia — now over 2,000 members — I moved to Zürich and found myself disconnected: no L&D community here suited me, however hard I searched.
So I started the Digital Learning Expert Group. With Christian Zurbuchen’s encouragement we held our first event at Migros, seeing how Sika enable staff to create peer-to-peer video learning. It went well — and then I did the dumbest thing: nothing. A rough patch at work knocked my confidence and the group stalled.
Now I’m back and doing it properly. There are already 125 members in the MeetUp group, and if the Australian experience taught me anything, that’s just the start. If you’re in or near Zürich and care about digital learning, come and join us — bring your work, your questions and your energy.