Definitely not for the faint of heart

Today on the MAX, I heard a man ask a librarian about the state of the library…and her response both saddened and made me think. It took her no less than two seconds to respond: The state of the library is unstable and we need to come up with better ways to promote ourselves and our services.

In some ways, I agree with this librarian. We spend tons of money and expend lots of energy making sure that the services that we provide are of quality to our customers. We look at circulation rates and decide what to improve and toss based on this data. But are we spending enough time promoting what we have so that patrons can know how truly vital we are to our communities?

Social Media has made it easier than ever to promote ourselves to a much larger community and demographic of people. The Chattahoochee Valley Regional System does comprehensive marketing on facebook and twitter alone to ensure that we have a very visible presence with our patrons. In some ways this is invaluable, but it does not take from the fact that we still need to hit the ground running with face to face interactions with people. I can’t begin to tell you how many times I’ve asked strangers if they had library cards, only to be responded with “why do I need one? I don’t read books.”

Its this fallacy of thinking that we need to change within our community. We are no longer the quiet, shushing centers of old. We are city and community centers with services as varied as the people who work in them. Maybe we should start promoting our selves by trying harder to use more personal marketing, as well as the other web 2.0 tools that we have at our disposal. Just saying 😀

Web Finds

OMG! Just fell in love with the Explanations in Plain English made by Common Craft. As everyone knows, Im a sucker for tuts that infuse comedic elements in them. Dont forget to check out Zombies in Plain English, laughed so freaking hard! Prolly because I’m reading The undead and Philosophy….

Check ’em out!

Learning how to deal, pt. 2 (Haters edition)

Readers Advisory: While I’m writing this, I’m listening to Collie Budz “Blind to you haters”. Beware.

Lately I’ve been thinking alot about change and progression. What this means to me in relation to my professional work environment, as well as how I can balance these two to fit into my personal scope of the world. My coworker, Bobbi Newman, posted a manifesto today on her blog entitled “The Hazards of Leading Culture Change” (view it here) and it struck a huge chord with me.

I’m in a confusing place, because this article brought up some great points that had me thinking a lot about how others handle change and progression. My main thought process was this; Why the h**l do people automatically reject ideas or negate progression, without first asking questions or seeking to find an understanding? Ive learned that change is inevitable and so is progression. These are two things that never go away, no matter how much you try to wish it away or ignore it like its not there.

I get so angry sometimes when people try to butt heads, or throw monkey wrenches into others ideas without first seeking to understand their rational and than offering alternative solutions. I understand that not everyone is going to be on the same page ALL the time, but we have to be fair and understanding with other people enough to value their insights and offer constructive criticism, rather than responding with destructive actions. And by destructive, I do mean creating an environment that fosters conflict and impedes a persons willingness to act within the spirit of transparency.

Anywhoo, just my opinion. We live in a world of haters, can’t expect that to change overnight. *shrugs*