Virtual World -- Real Experience

About this Blog

In today's dynamic and technology-driven workplace, unpaid experience has emerged as a legitimate asset in a career portfolio. The right kinds of unpaid experiences can set the job seeker apart from others, demonstrating a willingness and ability to try new experiences, take initiative, and make things happen


"Two Worlds, One Purpose"

The online virtual world of Second Life^® is most often used as a platform for informal networking, romance, artistic expression, moral and cultural experimentation, role playing, and generally having fun in a simulated three-dimensional world. At any given moment, tens of thousands of very real people from all over the world are plugged into Second Life^®.

How does Second Life® fit into this program?

All of those people in Second Life^® are playing, thinking, experimenting, exploring, socializing and generally on a quest for activities that make their virtual lives more meaningful, interesting and rewarding. It is a environment that is rich in opportunity for serious, real-life career builders who can offer tangible knowledge and skills in exchange for a chance to discover and exercise the more intangible personal traits that are best learned by "doing."
 

How is it possible to legitimize and verify career experience in a virtual world?

It is important to understand that this program is NOT about the virtual world. It's about the career experiences you can encounter only by engaging social and economic systems--in the real world or in a virtual world--with skill, intelligence, passion, and energy. Legitimate career experiences (paid or unpaid) are build upon your own ability to confront difficult problems, analyze them, experiment with creatives solutions, and collaborate with others in carrying out a solution. That legitimizes the experience.

Career experiences (paid or unpaid) must be verifiable. Participants in this Free-Ed.Net program are strongly advised to maintain a professional quality Facebook account, create a LinkedIn account, and maintain a blog that chronicles the experiences. Of course there are letters from workgroup colleagues and world-class professionals you might encounter in the virtual world.

A truly significant advantage of using a virtual world as a proving ground for career experience is that your failures are far less costly than in the real world.