No-one should be put off! Unlike talents, skills can be acquired, and whilst talent undoubtedly makes life easier, you will find that you can learn as you go along. But if you fancy yourself at solving problems and enjoy detective work and the thrill of the chase, family history is for you!
You don't need to remember where to find the information you seek. But it helps to know where to look - for example, a reference manual makes a handy purchase. If you cannot afford to buy a manual, members of your family history society will be only too pleased to help you. Or, by way of the internet, try one of the family history website mailgroups. See Links.
Analytical skills can be very helful as you will have plenty of information to sift through, some of which will have to be discarded as irrelevent (but keep it in a file in case you change your mind!).
Try not to be too judgemental. Consider a proposition from every angle, balancing the weight of evidence carefully, before making a decision about the fitness of an individual to join your family tree.
It also helps to be creative. When gathering information prior to analysis, consider not only the depth of information required for a specific individual, but also the breadth of information that night be available about people with similar "profiles". For example, how many others with the same forename and surname were born around the same time in the county? Broaden your choices to minimise the risk of error.
Attention to detail is important, obviously. Records need to be clear, consise and complete at all times. Having put information into your record, make sure you can get it out again on demand for further analysis and comparison with data obtained subsequently. After a few months, you WILL NOT remember everything gathered about the individuals in your family tree!
Be accurate. It is so easy to mistype names and transpose dates, so check everything recorded at every stage. Check back to original sources, where possible.
This is pretty basic stuff - easy to learn. But a little extra time and careful planning in the early days will pay you back with long-term enjoyment and fewer obstacles along the way.
And be patient - this is a long distance event!
| Family Search | Home |