I work with beginning genies nearly every week. There is always something new to learn and find out. Just found a 2 new mayflower people that I didn’t know of and as such was immensely. As James tanner says-“practice,practice, practice! When I started doing Swedish genealogy- I had to learn a whole new technique. Don’t give up!!!!!!
I love your videos. I've been doing family research since the 1980s when my father asked me to help find some information. That was way back before we had computers in the internet to help and my only resource was the family history centers. Over the years I've had surges where I research like a mad woman, and then times when I have just given up for a long periods of time. Your videos are helping me understand the process even better and encouraging me to get back into it again. Thank you for all you do. I'm so glad you share your knowledge with your viewers.
Thanks so much for your kind words. I started in the Family History Center days of microfilm and microfiche. Sadly, I couldn't use the centers often because they were open when I had college classes or when I needed to tend my young children. We live in exciting times to do research from home or take advantage of local libraries that have genealogy website access when Family History Centers aren't open. I'm happy to be party of your educational journey.
Beginner, Intermediate or Expert I feel can depend on the individual. For me I considered myself no longer a beginner when I broke several brick walls in my research. I then began to help others with much success and felt confident in learning the do', don't's, it's and out's of this field and having fun while doing it all. Thanks for the reminder of it all.
You're very welcome. Thanks for stopping by and leaving a comment. I hope you'll find other genealogy research related content on this channel valuable.
Once again, I have to say... I love this video! I still feel like I am a beginner, at times, as I have only been researching my family tree for about the last 13 years. It is a drop in the bucket compared to so many who have been researching for decades. However, I guess I realized that I wasn't really a "beginner" any longer when people I know from my community started coming to me to ask "how do I get started researching my tree" or "where would I figure out if my ancestor did this or this". The fact that I could not only answer them, but also give them resources to check out, makes me feel less of a beginner. At times, I feel like a beginner because I have not done much offline research. I know there is so much more out there, but balancing it with family and life commitments, coupled with location and financial constraints, it can feel like you are being held back. I believe we are our own worst enemies at times. We compare ourselves to others, that we see as "experts", and feel we come no where close to stacking up. We, oftentimes, forget that the "experts" were once where we are now. They are people, just like us, that continue to learn and practice their genealogical research methods and make mistakes like we do. As long as we continue to strive to learn from our errors, improve upon our knowledge and practice the steps we know to make, we will continue to move from being a 'good genealogist" to a "better genealogist"
Awww!!! I'm so glad you left this comment and that I read it today. I was feeling discouraged and you lifted me up. What you wrote is pure truth. We should stop comparing ourselves to others and simply assess where we are on the learning spectrum.
I have been at this now in a serious way for over 15 years. I have made my share of errors along the way. I think that the difference between a beginner and an intermediate genealogist can't just be abstracted to genealogy as a whole, but to areas within the broader set: A beginner in an area is learning through exposure to information, while an intermediate in an area realizes what they know and is able to share that knowledge in a way that helps others grow in their knowledge of genealogy. In that way I'm still doing things that are in a beginner stage while being an intermediate genealogist in other areas. We're always learning something new, and if we're wise we're putting that to effect, not only on our own tree but in support of other's trees.
I am glad that I had the opportunity to take a few minutes to watch this video. I can definitely relate to "Lacking Confidence". :) Mistakes are great teachers. I learned an important lesson from a pretty big mistake - never let my own genealogic or genetic experiences cloud my eyes when trying to help others uncover their biological families. Follow the records, follow the DNA, and never cast your assumptions in stone. It might get thrown right back at you. Another thing that I've learned along the way, thanks to FHF and a few other RU-vid genealogists - Ancestry doesn't have all of the answers. Sometimes you have to go offline to find the answers. Never discount genealogical societies or county archives. Many are quite willing to help. Thanks to a county archives, I now have the entire probate package for a third great-grandmother, including her will, which names my great-grandmother as her granddaughter. My great-grandmother's marriage to my great-grandfather is verified by that will, as is the father of my great-grandmother. The one question that I was looking to find an answer to wasn't answered by this package, but I got confirmation of details that I had already. That is a pretty big deal! I know that part of my tree is correct. I can almost hear my 3rd great-grandma say, "Great job, Suzanne!" :) Offline is how I started my family history adventure many years ago. It is still the best - and only - way to get some locally held records. Keep up the great work, Devon!
Suzanne, I'm so glad you can identify with this video. And I'm so happy for the success you've found with on and offline research. I'll reiterate what you believe your great-grandma says "Great job, Suzanne!"
I can somewhat identify with the initial comment. Not in reference to genealogy. And I think overall we often don't know what level is "beginner" as opposed to higher in a number of activities. In my case, for example, it was (and often still is) music. Because you are surrounded by musicians who play professionally and instantly seem to KNOW all of the skills necessary for that. I play by ear, which not all musicians do, but I have not learned how to read music or instantly know what chords are or what kind of intervals, etc. So when my guitar instructor asked me if I wanted to go into the studio and record some of my songs I instantly asked him, "Do you think I'm good enough?" He responded that of course I was. And when we got in the studio it was such a great time that I look forward to doing that again. I have not but I have hope that I may get together with other musicians and do that again in the future. In reference to genealogy I have never been concerned about my level of knowledge. I just -- as you said -- enjoy the ride and figure out new things all of the time. Or more precisely TRY new things. It is especially helpful to get that kind of experience when you assist someone else in their research which might be of a different place than your own. That, I think, is a great way of exploring something new. For example, assisting someone whose ancestors lived in Italy, but, in the area formerly under Austrian authority and where the old records are in German not Italian. So that gave me an opportunity to research in German records and now I know a little bit more about that. And prior to that I knew nothing. I would also add in the music situation that we had open mic nights at the music store and I participated in those and you are so correct to relax and have a good time and enjoy the activity. I would practice and practice and practice the songs over and over and over. So sure that I knew them and then in performance I would be so worried about getting all of that correct I was not relaxed and enjoying it. So I finally realized that I did need to practice so I had them down but not to the point of excess but more importantly to just have a good time. To make jokes and have a rapport with the audience and just enjoy the moment and I didn't get nervous or screw up playing the chords OR if I did I did not freeze up. I just picked it up where the next chord was and did the best I could but yes your advice about just enjoying it is the best advice.
@@FamilyHistoryFanatics Thanks. I might also add that in reference to widening our horizons we can do research for relatives who have different lineages through marriage. I have cousins whose father was a half-brother to my father and their paternal grandfather was of Polish ancestry. I did a little bit of research for them which introduced me to some Polish research which I was also not very familiar with. Unfortunately I eventually realized I was researching the wrong family and when researching his family there was not much information except the little bit I could find in newspapers -- mainly that their grandfather was arrested due to stowing away on a train with a buddy and two young women whom they had married in New Orleans who had run away from their home in Mississippi. Also a little bit of research in Filipino genealogy for somebody I knew and I did find out that a number of Filipinos have Chinese ancestry and that the original Chinese family name was merely translated into the same word in the Filipino language (usually Tagalog or Visayan/Bisayan). So if the meaning of the Chinese family name translated in English to "water" (for example), then it was changed to a Filipino name that also translated to the word for "water" in the Filipino language.
I once read that a person learns something on a beginner level and needs help from others to accomplish the goal. After a period of practice they are able to do it by themselves. At some point, they begin helping others. When you reach this point, it's time to begin again at the next level and go through the steps until you are confident that you know what that entails. Then it's time to move up another level.
I love the warm welcome you give everyone, Devon. We need loads of beginners making beginner mistakes! In my opinion, once you begin cleaning up your beginner goofs, you are moving into intermediate territory. Even if people leave genealogy before that step, they have left something behind for the rest of us to find. Yay! Even the pros make mistakes, and we've all found records which contain errors. The trick is to gather the evidence and puzzle out the real story behind the half-truths. That quest never ends.
I have asked this question of myself many times. I learn something new most every day so I must be a beginner. But right now, I'm in the middle of tracing one line through 19th century state and church records in small town Sicily (I don't know Latin or Italian so it's been an adventure). Maybe not advanced, but at least a small step past beginner. Big time imposter syndrome. So thanks for the reminder to be kind to myself. Y'all are doing great too, as this helpful video proves!
PLEASE be kind to yourself. If you're investigating church records in small town Sicily in the 19th century, you've moved beyond the beginner stage. While we're always learning some thing new, particularly in new areas of research, that doesn't take us back to the beginning stage. It means we have a new path to explore using the skills we developed previously. Don't let the imposter syndrome prevent you for doing genealogy research to the best of your ability.
I once worked with a woman who was confident that she was advanced in our field, but she didn't know the basics. Often, I have found that people with confidence know very little and they don't know the extent of what they don't know, so they assume that what they know is what there is to be known. I've noticed that people with a depth of knowledge in a field often recognize what other things in that field that they do not know. A manager once said that he would believe a person with confidence over a person without much confidence, which seems in direct opposition to my experience.
I have adopted the courage to admit what I don't know. I don't know how to research English Parish records. But I do know people who do and I seek their advice. And yet, I'm also confident to say, "Hey. That genealogy educator is either incorrect or painting with a very broad brush." For instance, I heard a speaker state something about all Germans in the US being Lutheran. I know that's not true because my German immigrant Catholic ancestor couldn't marry the German Lutheran ancestor because they weren't of the same faith. Further research shows even more German Catholics in the city of interest, so much so, that one congregation's services were in German, not Latin or English. So, we should find a balance between what we do know to be true and being humble enough to be aware that we don't know everything. Seeking out help from someone more knowledgeable is the sign of wisdom. Do you agree?
@@FamilyHistoryFanatics I totally agree. Similarly, someone told me that since my ancestors were from Ireland, they must be Catholic. As it turned out, they were Quakers, and my immigrant ancestor was documented in a book called Immigration of the Irish Quakers into Pennsylvania.
@@FamilyHistoryFanatics I most definitely agree! I will readily admit that I don't know everything, no matter how much I wish that I did. A true education doesn't give us all of the answers, it teaches us how to find the answers. Sometimes that involves getting help from others. No one person can know absolutely everything. We are meant to help each other and are made, by our Heavenly Father's design, to complement each other.
I realized a couple of years ago how I was doing in genealogy. I bought a book on advanced techniques of researching and realized I knew everything in that book. Either the book was really about beginning genealogy and had a bad title or that is how far advanced I really am. I think it is the later, since I have been at it for 32 years, but there is always room for improvement.
I had a similar experience with the book "Advanced Genealogy Research Techniques" by Drew Smith and George Morgan. I was hoping to learn some methodology that was more than what I was doing. Turns out, I was implementing everything in that book. I think this gave me confidence in my skills to have that experience.
I feel like some days I'm a beginner and other days I'm intermediate. Lots of records are online now, so I wonder if in time offline research won't be as much of a separation. I can find Polish records directly from the Polish archives. Many are digitizing them now. We are blessed with projects like genealogiawarchiwach, Metryki GenBaza and others. Digitized record access will be the battle to come. And although I'd love to walk the streets where my ancestors were from, for many it just isn't possible. If you are able to, you are very fortunate!
@ChaiLatte, Good points. As a retired member of Military, I did walk where my German Ancestors walked without knowing it. I wasn't into Genealogy then and the "Internet" wasn't a thing. Next year I am taking my Family on purpose to the Old Country with full knowledge and appreciation for how hard their lives were in the 1700s. This time I will step in the church where my 5th Great Grandfather got married .
In the coming years, many more records will come online, especially since places like FamilySearch have digitized their microfilm/microfiche. Now they're digitizing new collections they hadn't previously filmed. It's so exciting!!!
@@whyaskwhybuddry Whyaskwhybudry. That's exciting. I walked where my Canadian Ancestors walked, and it was amazing. My next journey is to visit Cincinnati, Ohio and then Gillersheim, Hanover, Germany. Someday.
@@FamilyHistoryFanatics Drive by the Gold Vault and wave at me when you come towards Cinci. Not that far away. While you're in Cinci, you GOTTA go to Findlay Market on North Race Street as well as the Underground Railroad Museum downtown.
@@FamilyHistoryFanatics Then you have Newport Aquarium on the other side of the Ohio River. Southwest of Cinci in Kentucky is the Ark Encounter. It's a 515 foot long replica of the Biblical Noah's Ark. Three decks of exhibits inside with animatronic characters. Amazing amount of work was put into it.
I recently started branching out into researching my cousin’s husband’s tree. He’s Native American, so it really is a different experience working on the different resources and difficulties just going back to the 1870s!
That's awesome! I picked a New Mexican family at random. It's challenging my genealogy research skills. Definitely can relate to the different experience of which you speak.
@@FamilyHistoryFanatics Most interesting things I’ve found so far was a 2nd or 3rd great grandfather who definitely lived more than 100 years, possibly as much as 110, and a great grandmother and grandfather who were stunt riders in a Wild West show in the 1920s and 1930s.
I have made more then my share of mistakes in 43 years. And once that Mistake is out there, its an act of Congress and The Genie Gods and Ancestors to get it fixed.
True. But we all have to make mistakes so that we gain experience. Swimmers do this as they learn to refine their techniques. Genealogists are no different. Granted, getting people to stay up with our corrections is a challenge. But in the past 20 years, I have seen corrections to my mistakes in the Puesecker line finally get fixed. Then, I corrected the relationship between Anna Gordon to B.S. Smith. There are several gentlemen with that name. I figured out the right one, and finally, Anna has her correct husband.
@Family History Fanatics, On the other end of the Spectrum, when are you a "Good Enough Genealogist" to hang out your sign and get paid to do it for others?
That's a very difficult question to answer. Some would say that you have to have credentials to be a professional genealogist. Others say you need experience that others don't have. I say, are you willing to charge for the work you do? And is someone willing to pay you for it? The first is a conversation with your inner self. Many people can easily charge for lookups. For writing research reports, charging clients would require practice doing a variety of reports to feel confident enough to require someone to pay for the work we do. For writing a family history based on records, this service requires a different skill set. Have we written for the public? Have we written enough family histories to understand how much time this takes and our competency level? Those decisions impact whether we can become a professional. Then based on how much time each of those tasks takes, we can allocate a minium wage we desire to make the projects worth our time and energy. And finally, are enough people willing to pay us the rates we want for our service. That question is not always easy to determine. I might have given you too much to consider, but I have considered this question before. That's why I chose to teach people how to climb their family trees. Few people would pay me the rates I desire to make a side business of me doing their family history research.
@@FamilyHistoryFanatics Good thing is that there are Job Sites specifically for Genealogists and many are Remote positions. Of course, Ancestry's ProGenealogists is just one of them.
June... you're so fast on the best response. If you cited your source of an offline record set, double check. If it's still accurate, it stands. If you find an mistake, no worries. For those you didn't source, look for original documentation offline and online. You might find the evidence you need and fall in love with a record collection once again.
