OK, so it’s not a great principle to live your life by. But when it comes to portfolios, you could be excused for wearing a shirt like this.  

No matter what their type or emphasis, portfolios are about representing yourself to an audience – even if that audience is yourself. It’s very personal, and often not all of it is meant to be shared. I like to think of it as a space to grow and learn – to develop me.

Of course, how well you represent yourself usually depends on how much ownership you feel you have over your portfolio. If I know my entire portfolio will be laid bare to the world, I’m more likely to include only ’safe’ reflections on my abilities and experiences. There’s just too many consequences otherwise. 

D’Arcy Norman, along with many others, has written about portfolios and how important it is for the user to feel a sense of ownership over their portfolio – that it’s theirs, that they have control over the structure and presentation, as well as when (and with whom) it’s shared. These are fundamental essentials to any portfolio ’space’ if you want to make it real – an honest reflection of you, not a cardboard cutout made to meet someone else’s specifications. Helen Barrett’s example  of a group of high school students who burnt their portfolios as soon as they left school is a prime example of what happens when you don’t feel ownership. Of course, the more common result is that you simply stop using it. It’s relegated to the ‘good idea, but…’ category and disappears into the abyss, never to be seen again.

I guess that’s why I called this blog ‘realfolio’. I wanted to explore different ways of creating a professional portfolio that’s a real reflection of myself, and not just something designed to tick other people’s boxes.

So how do you get that sense of ownership over your portfolio? A good place to start is to work out what you’re actually trying to achieve by it. Are you doing it to help you get a job at the end of your Masters or Doctorate or whatever, or are you doing it to learn more about yourself, your abilities and where you best ‘fit’ in this world? Or something else? Be clear on these questions, so you know where your portfolio is taking you, and who you are writing it for.

The other part that’s important for ownership is deciding how you’ll present it. Are you a social media junkie or a paper and pen fanatic – or something inbetween? What about the people you’ll be presenting to? Choose tools that work for you and your audience. While CSU isn’t offering a portfolio system as such at the moment (though this will be happening soon), there’s lots of ideas in the transferable skills wiki that will help you decide on some tools that will get you started and make sure that you don’t waste time if you decide later to use CSU’s portfolio tools.

The other part of ownership is presenting your personality. Start collecting images that typify you – whether they are of yourself, your study area, or concept images that highlight particular attributes or ideas that represent you.

You might start with guidelines about the kinds of things to include, but remember to make it your own. The objective isn’t to colour in the blanks; the portfolio is about you, so make it about you. Even if you come up with the same choices as your colleagues. This is from a CSU staff member, and postgrad student: 

Even though the product I arrive at could be standard…the process that I go through is the important part. And when that is the case I have greater ownership than starting off with a template and just filling in the areas. That sort of detaches it for me…It’s the thinking process and the ownership.

And he’s right…thinking though those initial questions, even if your answers are the same as someone elses, is paramount. That’s how you make it yours. That’s how you’ll ensure it’s a portfolio that you use and don’t just abandon after a few feeble efforts. That’s how you know it’s a real folio that represents you.

Photo from Flickr:  Its all about me

Originally uploaded by labels_30

Originally uploaded by dullhunk

Who needs another blog, right? There are zillions – from serious rants on social media and feminism to Cinderella’s birthday party  bash - so what else is there to offer? I mean, really!

Well, I guess this one will appeal to those interested in portfolios, particularly those at Charles Sturt University. We’ve been exploring the use of portfolios here at the university for about a year or so now, and have learned a lot. Do we have a complete solution yet? Not entirely. But we’re getting closer, and we’re keen to launch something that will work for our users, not just throw another ‘product’ in your face that has minimal use.

What I’m attempting to do here is to share useful resources I find, information about what’s happening in various areas of the university in relation to portfolios – including some great portfolios that I’ve seen, and tips that really work. If we can get some discussion going from that, all the better. Stay tuned…