Comments on: Who Are We and Where Are We Going? http://acrlog.org/2007/10/03/who-are-we-and-where-are-we-going/ Blogging by and for academic and research librarians Thu, 11 Mar 2010 02:07:41 -0500 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 hourly 1 By: If I Could Recommend Just One Book http://acrlog.org/2007/10/03/who-are-we-and-where-are-we-going/comment-page-1/#comment-38595 If I Could Recommend Just One Book Wed, 24 Oct 2007 11:41:00 +0000 http://acrlblog.org/2007/10/03/who-are-we-and-where-are-we-going/#comment-38595 [...] the second is the worry that you haven’t gotten a 100. When I wrote about worry in my last post, it may have seemed that I was talking about the first kind of worry when I was really talking [...] [...] the second is the worry that you haven’t gotten a 100. When I wrote about worry in my last post, it may have seemed that I was talking about the first kind of worry when I was really talking [...]

]]> By: It’s a still almost a year away, but… « Supplied By a Sub-Sub-Librarian http://acrlog.org/2007/10/03/who-are-we-and-where-are-we-going/comment-page-1/#comment-38061 It’s a still almost a year away, but… « Supplied By a Sub-Sub-Librarian Wed, 10 Oct 2007 16:25:41 +0000 http://acrlblog.org/2007/10/03/who-are-we-and-where-are-we-going/#comment-38061 [...] It’s a still almost a year away, but… My expected date of graduation is August 2008, and that’s only two complete semesters away from now. It’s coming on faster than I thought–which, as of this week, I’m glad of. I know I’ll be a raw beginner, but I’d like to get started, and I’d like to think that the profession can find a use for me. So, as is often the case when you’ve given a little piece of your heart to something, I’m on an emotional rollercoaster this week as I imagine myself making my way closer to being an actual library professional. My feed reader brought me some views from people who are the kind of people I hope to be in a year: new professionals in academic jobs. Via ACRLog, I heard from two new librarians this week,  Brett Bonfield and Josh Petrusa. The passion and intelligence in their writing is obvious and to me, quite encouraging, but I think what I responded to even more was their realism. Yup, the role of a librarian might be in crisis no matter how much we love libraries. Yup, it might be hard to make our bold new ideas fly once we hit the workplace. Somehow it’s really helpful to hear people who are doing what I want to do tell it like it is for them. I have found a couple of great mentors along the path to my own education and they have great advice, but I sometimes feel the need to reality-check this and balance it with the view on the ground from my soon to be peers. I think there are going to be big differences in the trajectories of our careers as compared to theirs. To bring some of these up helps me start preparing for that. On the other hand, it’s always important to listen to more experienced voices as well–everything is bound to be new to us right now, but on the other hand they’ve lived through a few cycles of major change and have a broader perspective. [...] [...] It’s a still almost a year away, but… My expected date of graduation is August 2008, and that’s only two complete semesters away from now. It’s coming on faster than I thought–which, as of this week, I’m glad of. I know I’ll be a raw beginner, but I’d like to get started, and I’d like to think that the profession can find a use for me. So, as is often the case when you’ve given a little piece of your heart to something, I’m on an emotional rollercoaster this week as I imagine myself making my way closer to being an actual library professional. My feed reader brought me some views from people who are the kind of people I hope to be in a year: new professionals in academic jobs. Via ACRLog, I heard from two new librarians this week,  Brett Bonfield and Josh Petrusa. The passion and intelligence in their writing is obvious and to me, quite encouraging, but I think what I responded to even more was their realism. Yup, the role of a librarian might be in crisis no matter how much we love libraries. Yup, it might be hard to make our bold new ideas fly once we hit the workplace. Somehow it’s really helpful to hear people who are doing what I want to do tell it like it is for them. I have found a couple of great mentors along the path to my own education and they have great advice, but I sometimes feel the need to reality-check this and balance it with the view on the ground from my soon to be peers. I think there are going to be big differences in the trajectories of our careers as compared to theirs. To bring some of these up helps me start preparing for that. On the other hand, it’s always important to listen to more experienced voices as well–everything is bound to be new to us right now, but on the other hand they’ve lived through a few cycles of major change and have a broader perspective. [...]

]]> By: Barbara Fister http://acrlog.org/2007/10/03/who-are-we-and-where-are-we-going/comment-page-1/#comment-37869 Barbara Fister Fri, 05 Oct 2007 15:02:34 +0000 http://acrlblog.org/2007/10/03/who-are-we-and-where-are-we-going/#comment-37869 Thanks for the though-provoking post. I love your distinction between technology and culture. We tend to think one defines the other, but you're right - it's up to us to decide who we are and what we need to do. I'm also cheered to have a colleague who isn't afraid to say "I love libraries." Welcome to the profession. Thanks for the though-provoking post. I love your distinction between technology and culture. We tend to think one defines the other, but you’re right – it’s up to us to decide who we are and what we need to do.

I’m also cheered to have a colleague who isn’t afraid to say “I love libraries.” Welcome to the profession.

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