Sitting here as the clouds begin to roll in for their daily rain dump, and the post-lunch procrastination fog is thick. (Did you hear that thunder?) I have a three-hour workshop to plan for this Saturday, but there is a blog post tangled in my brain that is keeping me from getting to my work. Pardon me while I detangle it now.
I recently changed my avatar across the webz. I have written about my obsession with avatars and identity before. So why bring it up again now? Let’s back up. Actually let’s take a look at the image first:
cc licensed ( BY NC ) flickr photo shared by Intrepid Flame
Not minutes after it was posted, I received a few responses:
What’s with the new avatar pic? Looks dangerous …
Your new avatar looks like some kind of stalker killer from a nasty video game nightmare.
Your avatar makes me think you’re gonna eat my brains.
These comments were all shared in good humor, and I was not upset by them. I get it. The picture looks odd, sinister, maybe even a bit scary. You must be asking yourself, does something so petty warrant a blog post? Bear with me. As we work with students and talk about the idea of identity creation and online communities and interactions, we often mention the importance of honesty and authenticity. We talk about being ourselves and the distrust of strangers we meet online–the importance of visual cues about who we are become more and more important. So why did I, inadvertently, choose an image that makes me look scary? Why aren’t I changing it any time soon?
Because this image, the look in the eye, the beard, the lighting, the mood, the tone is how I felt yesterday. It is a part of who I am at this time in my life. I have spent lots of energy creating authentic flashes of who I am to build my online persona. I am not a photoshopped head-shot, all smiles and professional looking. (No offense to those of you who use professional head-shots) Sometimes I am a silly dad, sometimes I am who you see above. I love seeing the various phases of who I have been, who I am, and who I might become, everytime I see images of myself reflected back from the interwebz
This may not be the most profound blog post, I will be the first to admit, but as we model behavior for our students I can’t help but insist that being yourself, even when that is not the best face forward is a valuable act. One of the most common criticism of online life is that, because participants can choose what they share, we only share positive images and tell happy stories from our lives, thus creating false images of who we really are. This image, and the others I share are my way of proving those critics wrong. What you see if what you get? But be careful, because that person is always changing and has more depth than a static smiling avatar.
I like this idea, and you’re right about our online personas and interactions being safely pleasant. Not wanting to say anything contentious in case people “unfriend” us or stop following us. That isn’t really how we live our lives is it? Yet, we are telling students that the same ethics and principles should apply online as do online.
We are not shiny, happy people in real life – much as we may wish we were! I think I may change my avatar more often to reflect my changing moods too, after all, many of my online relationships and friendships are becoming as important than the ones I have face-to-face… so better make them a bit more real.
I like this one, it’s pretty… intense.
Seriously, I appreciate your exploration/experimentation/expression (for the thousandth time, thanks). I’m gonna work this into an upcoming video preso about shaping our identities. What I read between the lines is that rather than projecting yourself how you think the world should see you (smiling professional head shot) as a whole you take an opportunity to reveal an honest liver of part of you.
I don’t see the look as sinister, it is that intent focus of the eye that rivets my attention.
Jabiz, all of this is true, but don’t we also consider our audience and purpose?… in every kind of communication? (including visual)
Yes, great question. But what, who, where is our audience online? These little avatars are everywhere. They peak out and somehow are meant to be windows into who we are. How can we know consider who will be watching and where from?
Like Alan said, it is difficult to know how to project oneself when the audience is vague and the self is in flux. I would hate to see kids always playing it safe and being who they think the world wants to see rather than being themselves. Who ever that may be this week!
I don’t see my avatar as a window but really just a representation. I’m not saying you shouldn’t be yourself online — I think you know me well enough to know I totally am myself online, and I respect that you are too. But when you post a photo like this as representative of yourself, surely you do so thinking about how others will interpret it? The online world is not solely from Jabiz’s perspective, right? So the same is true for anything I post. I ask myself, “How will this be perceived?”
Of course there are ways to subversively change the way people perceive things — this post is one way. However, it’s important also I think to be mindful of your audience. And I do think you can answer your questions of “what who where is our audience online?” They are the people who come across your posts in various contexts. It’s vague but not undefined. You know where you post. You have an idea of who reads / views what you post in those spaces.
As for our students, they do need to be able to take risks, absolutely. But they need to do that in safe environments and this is why I don’t think it’s appropriate to just drop them off in the middle of the Internet and see how they go. They need our guidance. They need private spaces to play first, to get helpful and honest feedback, and to make informed choices. I suspect the backlash would be huge and troublesome if it was a 13yo who posted a photo for the first time and was told by random strangers, “Your pic looks like a terrorist.” Can you imagine? That kid might never post anything ever again, even if he felt like that pic was representative of his true self — that week or forever. So how do we help them navigate that? How do we give them room to explore and understand what their audience — however vague — might perceive?
Let me ask you this — would you have used the same avatar image if you’d been recruiting at a job fair this week? Or starting your own business? Writing recommendation letters for your students’ college acceptance? Running for office?
Who would have thought this throw away post, would lead to such a rich and interesting conversation. We could get into semantics here about windows and representations, and truly try to define the role of an avatar, but let’s not get too bogged down there. I hope we can agree that an avatar does serve the purpose of a book cover. A first impression, a gate way into who we are online. We see avatars on nearly every social website and these small pics are meant, to some extent to lead potential friends, followers, whoever into deeper online spaces. Hence the reference to the window. But representations works just as well.
You are also right that I do think about how the picture will be perceived, but not to the extent that I edit myself too much. As you know I have made a bit of a hobby/experiment with the pliability of online expression and identity creation. I have hit boundaries and suffered the consequences, but have also pushed and found many places where the web is malleable and forgiving.
I never see anything one thing I post online as a presentation of myself. I am in theprocess of writing my life online. I hope that it can be seen as whole. Every picture, every tweet, every post, every status, every video, every thought is a small piece in a much larger mosaic. I have nearly 1000 pictures on Daily Mugshot, how can I put too much weight in one avatar that will last a few weeks. Do you see what I mean, this pic is meant to be a shade in a larger picture.
So yes, I do think about how it will be perceived, but its impermanent and fluid nature help me not put too much weight in it.
You are also right that I do have a sense of my audience. We have created a pretty sweet little community here, and I knew that you all would “get it.” You have seen enough of my ego games and read enough of my work, to shake your head and move on, but having said that. I am finding more and more often that random people are entering my world and having a much fuller idea of who I am, but the diversity of selves I have online.
An self image-google search can be a fascinating exercise. Like my moods, like my work, like my self, mine is pretty diverse. I think that can be equally as important as a “branded” head shot.
Students: Yes, we agree again that they need safe ares to get a sense of self before they go public, but who they become when they do decided to go public has a lot to do with how we frame what “being public” is meant to look like. If we simply show them that everyone who is successful and adult looks a certain way, “professional” than aren’t we limiting who they can be?
I am always worried about my tattoos and facial hair when I apply for jobs or need to look “professional” but that is exactly what I am trying to fight. Which segues perfectly to your last points about how I would present myself if I were looking for a job. I am lucky to be in a stable place right now and have some freedom to “be myself.” but you bring up a very valid point.
I am actually trying to decided if I need to shave the beard when I come to Singapore in a few weeks and a do a school tour and meet some people at my new school. Hard to tell who to be on or off line 🙂
Thanks for playing along. Lots of good thinking here. As always.
Well, I’m always very happy and I do smile often 🙂 See. Here’s one more just for you 🙂
In all honestly, I don’t think your photo is scary. I do, however, think that be it online or offline we’re creating personae. When I’m angry with my friends or family, I don’t bring it to the classroom. I don’t bring that to a meeting. I may bring it to lunch and have a good gripe about it…but it’s not for everyone to see. So I guess in the same way, do we want people to judge us based on a first encounter? Anyhow, you can win more friends with a smile than with a frown! I’m a firm believer of, and I will encourage my students to find themselves, to push boundaries, and express who they are or who they want to be, or who they are becoming…but if I’m happy with photos of my family, a professional head-shot, a scene from India, or me being silly with friends, I have a right to do that too, don’t I?
Of course you have that right. You have the right to be whoever you want. That is what I am saying. Sometimes, we, especially as teachers are meant to look and act a certain way.I am just saying that I don;t always look, fell or act that way.
Imagine if you had a goth student or someone else going through a dark period, or something that is a bit unorthodox, we wouldn’t (shouldn’t) discourage them to change just to appear more “professional”
I agree with the smiling. You know me. I smile. I smile a lot, but I want to have the right not to and not have people call me a serial killer or a terrorist.
I actually very much like this shot, but I am drawn to dark, mysterious, creepy stuff. My avatar is of me smiling from my birthday two years ago. I had cropped that picture and whenever I try to crop others and alter them to make them small enough to change it, it never lets me. I was raised that I should try to portray happy/positive even if I am not feeling it as not everyone needs to know if I am not, first impressions are very important, and I should look/act a certain way even if I am not feeling it because of what I do or it may cause problems that are not intended. Even if I am not feeling happy/smiley I don’t keep those pictures of myself around or up as they never help to improve my mood instead they usually just help me to continue in that same vein. I am fine with however others want to represent themselves and don’t force them to conform. In the US I had two huge teddy bears and some sock monkeys in my class. Some of the guys wanted to take them for picture day that was going to be in the yearbook. I was fine with that. That is how they chose to express themselves in their pictures.
I agree about being authentic online. You will see that I do tweet about my rough days just like I tweet about the successful ones. BTW a rough day today. But I believe in the W curve. I had been having a lot of ‘wins’ recently so I guess I was due for a crash. I hope that I can climb back up the curve again – sometimes that W curve wave dunps me a few times in a row. I think that the hardest part of being a Tech Coach is because we have no authority and so we are open to attack. Breathe and move on …
I had a similar experience when I changed my avatar a year or so ago for a prostate cancer awareness campaign. The simple act of changing my avatar turned a weak tie in my PLN (Helen Keegan someone who I was following, but never interacted with) into a strong tie as we connected and inspired each other to write blog posts about avatars and identity (http://clintlalonde.net/2010/11/28/avatar/).
My take was wondering if we lose something when we change our online visual identity? I tend to use avatars (like CogDog’s dog, for example) as markers – signs I use that tell me the people I know and trust in my network have been there or gone before. An avatar can sometimes be a quick way for me to help organize the chaos of the internet.
I am seeing more an more instances where these visual markers are being used on the web. Google searches that are personalized based on my social network connections, with the smiling (or sinister 😉 faces of people in my network beaming back at me like a personal recommendation and validity marker.
So, I wonder. Do we do a bit of harm to our network when we change these markers? Certainly not to those people we have strong ties with, who have probably met f2f or been connected with you long enough to recognize your Twitter handle or use other clues to validate your identity. But what about with those people who we have relatively weak ties with? Does something a simple as changing an avatar weaken trust in a network?
In your post you asked a great series of questions, “Over time, we all change. Our physical appearance, the way we think about things, who we are is constantly in motion, sometimes from day to day. So why shouldn’t our avatars change to reflect who we are at that moment in time? Why shouldn’t we be able to use whatever symbol or photo or image to represent us?”
To which I have answered that we do change and so should our digital representations. I think fluid images help actually strengthen ties, cuz like Alan said on your blog, ” its the sum of what you post and share.”
You also said, “But when we are in an environment where trust and reputation are hard to establish, do we run the risk of weakening those signals of trust to our network by undertaking the simple act of changing our avatar?”
I am willing to take that chance. I don’t need a to be connected to anyone who only knows me through a static avatar. I hope that the content, ideas and links I share will keep people interested, and on their toes as they try to figure out who I am. 🙂
Thanks for stopping by.
we are way more than an avatar. it is tiny for good reason.
I don’t think this is a throw away post 🙂 It’s actually a good topic because as cliche as it is, times are a’ changing and we have changing (different) concerns. Fifteen years ago, who would have thought choosing an avatar would be an issue? And maybe twenty years ago, who would have thought that choosing a username or handle would have been so important?
I was watching Jeff Utecht’s video “Getting Started on Twitter” for the COETAIL online cohort and he talks about choosing a good avatar and a brief description of yourself. Since this will help people know if they want to follow you or not. I laughed a little because it sounds like a dating web site. But funnier even still, that what he said is true.
I use a few different avatars in different sources. One is half of my face, one is me holding a camera (so you can’t see my face) and one is a bobble head of me that was a present from a student. Yet on some other sites, I just use one of my travel photos that I like, which I’m not even in. So can we tell anything about a person from their avatar? Mine might say that I don’t like to draw attention to myself. Which is actually true.