Content curation is one of two phrases I heard this week for the first time.
The other one was ‘Digital shadow’. I love new things. It can be a bit tiring but it makes me happy!
“Content curation is the gathering, organizing and on-line presentation of content related to a particular theme or topic”.
Content curation is a skill and an art – what to include, what to leave out and how to express/present it.
Portfolio careers used to be new – the perfect second career for people like me who love variety and who would rather have work like tapas or dim sum than just 1 main dish.
Apparently 90% of the information on the web has appeared in the last 2 years. That is enough to make your head explode, hence the need for content curators to manage and make sense of it.
A museum like the V&A, for example, only has a small proportion of items on display. They have been careful selected and displayed. The rest are archived.
The world needs content curators with people becoming information grazers and a shorter attention span. I am even worrying about this blog being too long. … Bear with me though.
A common worry for people who come to me wanting a second career is that they don’t like what they are doing, but they don’t know what else they could do instead. They can go round and round in circles feeling stuck and frustrated. Another block to career change is that people cannot see how their skills are transferable to do something else, as they have been doing one thing all their lives, sometimes for the same employer.
Luckily I am the mistress of reinvention and have a broad network and constantly connecting mind – (wish it had an ‘off’ button), so am good at helping people to see their skills, how they are transferable and new careers where they can be applied.
New careers like content curation are appearing all the time and sometimes, a bit like with new product development, needs can be created when people did not know that they had them. Imagine creating your own career playing to a strength, hobby or passion!
Many moons ago, I worked as an account planner in the advertising and communication industry for JWT, little did I know it, but I ‘content curated’ all the time, synthesising research into a creative brief, a white paper, useful insights & ideas or a brand positioning. I remember to this day, my first freelance project for what became a regular client. This gruff Yorkshireman (I love Northerners) dumped a huge stack of research reports on my desk and said: “Right then, let’s see what you can do with that little lot by 5pm today.” It felt like an exam! I delivered. Phew!
It was the beginning of my content curator career, although I did not know it at the time.
Good content curation is a bit like an iceberg – there is only a small bit visible compared to the amount of work that was put into it.
So if you are at career crossroads, don’t worry. Your perfect second career might be emerging as we speak.
What new careers have you heard about recently?
PS By the way, if anyone knows what ‘digital shadow’ is, do let me know, as I haven’t discovered the answer yet.
To read our bulletin about Portfolio careers, click on this link:
http://archive.constantcontact.com/fs042/1102862873131/archive/1103260139794.html
To read about Anne’s career change from market research to facial workouts, click on this link:
http://archive.constantcontact.com/fs042/1102862873131/archive/1108092201346.html
For more useful insights and tips, follow us on Twitter:
https://twitter.com/talentliberator
