My biggest takeaway from reading “Portfolio Keeping” was the emphasis on self reflection.  Before reading the book I initially thought of a portfolio as a collage of all the work done throughout the year and a few pictures attached for aesthetic purposes.  Now, I realize that a portfolio isn’t just assignments crammed onto one website, but instead a blog in which a journey is told.  Even when you’re finished with a piece of writing, a portfolio gives you the chance to analyze, revise, and reflect upon your assignments and the journey that you took to handing in the best work you could possibly present to others. Rather than presenting just assigned essays and projects in a portfolio, it’s important to ensure that you add personal reflections in your portfolio while self-reflecting throughout the entire process of building your portfolio.  By reflecting through the step by step process of creating your portfolio, the project will become better organized, easier to manage, and constructed in a more well thought out manner.  By reflecting on comments your classmate or instructor made on your portfolio or assignments, you will be better at understanding which strategies of building your portfolio are more successful.  For example, if you don’t understand most of the comments left on your work, you might be better off  having someone else to comment on your work. In some way, reflecting is a tool for revising.