Learning from what went wrong

We usually want to learn from the best -- the perfect novelist, the triumphant quarterback, the most cogent genealogist. But sometimes we can learn more from things that didn't quite go right. I can understand basketball and chess strategy better from games played by high-schoolers than the pros.

That's the idea behind my article in the May issue of OnBoard, the newsletter of the Board for Certification of Genealogists, "Anatomy of a Failure: What I Learned from My First Portfolio," i.e., the one that came back unsuccessful in 2010.

OnBoard's slogan could be "not available in libraries," or at least I don't see it there. It comes out three times a year and anyone can subscribe for $15. Selected past articles are in the "Skillbuilding" portion of BCG's website. If you find them interesting, a subscription might be a good expenditure.

Are you On Board?

Arguably the thrice-yearly newsletter of the Board for the Certification of Genealogists, OnBoard, has the highest information per ounce of any genealogy publication. In the current (May) issue it's Tom Jones 1, "source snobbery" 0; and Stefani Evans shows just how closely we can analyze even a derivative source.

You do not need to be certified in order to subscribe, and a subscription also supports an organization crucial to maintaining and advancing genealogy research standards.

If you don't have $15 to spare, or aren't sure, check out the generous sampling of articles published 1995-2010 under "Skillbuilding" on the BCG web site. Whatever our level of research, reading these short articles will make us better.





Thomas W. Jones, "Perils of Source Snobbery," OnBoard, vol. 18 no. 2 (May 2012):9-10, 15.



Harold Henderson, "Are you On Board?" Midwestern Microhistory: A Genealogy Blog, posted 6 June 2012 (http://midwesternmicrohistory.blogspot.com : accessed [access date]). [Please feel free to link to the specific post if you prefer.]