When I started this unit I was a bit put out about the need to write a blog and be so interactive as part of the process.  After all I came here to learn accounting and where the numbers go,  I didn’t come here to blog!  A blog is what I do for fun, not as part of a university unit.

After a bit of reflection and some sage advice from my wife, “get on with it idiot and stop complaining, you know how this game is played!”  I did what she suggested and got on with it.  A very astute woman is Mrs Feasey.

Because of who I am, I can’t just do a token effort to meet the minimum standard, it’s all or nothing.  I also can’t stop myself from sharing my experiences and trying to help.

So despite my initial thoughts of “what’s the point?”, I can completely see the point of the exercise and I seem to have gotten right into it.

Writing blogs is fun, it can definitely open up a new world for those unfamiliar with it and providing comments and support to others through blogs is immediately helpful and actually a really good idea.  Well done Martin for coming up with that one.

This post is not about me though, it’s about others and who I consider to be the top 3 blogs I have come across on the unit so far.  With over 300 participants on this unit there is not chance I’m going to see all of the blogs, though I am giving it a red hot go and following about 50.  This alone makes it a tough decision.

Not being one to arbitrarily decide anything, there’s got to be at least some criteria and I’m going with

• layout – how does it look and feel, can I find posts easily
• content – what’s in there, is the course criteria being met
• style – how is it written, does it engage me as a reader

There are some really strong contenders and I wrote about some of them in a previous blog post last week.  A couple of additional mentions before I declare the one’s I enjoy the most so far.

Mel Sergiacomi, Naija Farcancy Gayle Black Maitland Bezzina Karen (sorry can’t find her surname) Dayanara Lopez  and Kym Hof

I enjoy all these blogs for various reasons, including the fact that they just make me smile.  Go check them out if you’ve the time and follow their links to others and share the love.

In the end there a can be only one  three Highlander and in no particular order

Claudia Turiano

I came to Claudia’s blog via Shannon Pengelly . Shannon’s blog is well worth a look btw.  Claudia’s blog is very well laid out, I like the style, the content and the level of self reflection.   I appreciate a good meme and a good quote and Claudia has a good balance so far in the blog.

Lisa O’Neill

I reckon Lisa’s just warming up.  She’s got a dry sense of humor and I’m getting a feeling that if she really let’s it rip it’ll be a doozy.  I like her style, honesty and can relate to her challenges of study and managing life with teenagers.  Her content is good and she’s on track with the requirements.

Sonia Elizabeth Lopez Gomez

I think Sonia is doing a cracking job.  Again I like the style and layout of her blog and she’s put some great content on it. I like the way she laid out her company profile nice and clearly. What put Sonia in the top 3 was the time she took to go through the ASS#1 requirements and break it down nice and easy for everyone.  This is great leadership and support behavior and sets a great example to others on what good looks like.

That’s the top three at this time.

What I’ve enjoyed is that we’re all, me included, coming to grips with a new concept of learning and communication.  I’ve enjoyed reading my peers reflections on how they got here and what their goals are.  We’ve all got access to the same base information in the study guide and everyone has a different company.  What’s been interesting is the way that each student has gone about interpreting and presenting their information and this is great to read and review.

I’ve enjoyed reading the blogs, the KCQ’s and the company information.  I’ve commented where I think I can add value and I have been appreciated by others.  It would be fantastic to be able to acknowledge the great parts of all 55 blogs I follow, unfortunately breakfast and work is going to take priority.  Maybe in a future post.

As I mentioned earlier at the start I really didn’t understand the point of an accounting blog, but I do understand it now.  It’s a great medium to encourage communication, one of the key aims of the unit, collaboration and learning.  It’s also fun and when we have fun we learn more.  Kudos to Martin for this stroke of genius.