As a first-year academic librarian on a one-year contract, I am slowly feeling the pressure of time creeping on me as I navigate the job market once again. A previous blog post by YoonHee Lee, a former FYAL (first-year academic librarian, also Korean-Canadian :)), helped me to digest the precarity of contract positions in academic libraries with their thoughtful writing: https://acrlog.org/2019/12/21/reflecting-on-contract-work-and-precarity/ I wanted to build on this by sharing of some of the ways I approach my work, many thousands of kilometres away from home, and the strategies I use to cope with learning, understanding, and enjoying my life even as the clock is ticking.
Changing my mindset
Like law graduates doing articling, or doctors being matched for residencies, I came around to the idea of these one-year contracts replacing sabbaticals or parental leaves as a sort of testing the waters of a position. Is academic librarianship even right for me, what are some of the things I look for in an institution, what does a good workplace dynamic look like, what are must-have supports I need in a workplace, what is a good city to live, and so on. The positive aspects according to the survey participants from Mcniff & Carter’s 2022 study are also reinforced by gaining experiences in different settings and developing social networks within academic institutions. Whenever I think that I am over-compensating by fixating my thoughts on the positive aspects, I take solace in reading interviewees’ transcripts, statistics, and discussions, and it helps to reframe my mindset in a more beneficial way.
Tackling Manageable Projects
The constraints of a year-long contract are most felt when I am thinking about projects, committees, and organizations to join. Since I don’t know where I will be in a couple of months, it’s hard to write my name down for something when a role comes up or even choose which email to register for a professional association with. Something I do to counterbalance this wishy-washy feeling is to actively seek partnerships in the library or projects I can help with in the short run. For instance, even though I am a research librarian and outreach is not explicitly expected of me, I work with the outreach department during exam seasons to help with crafts, games, and opportunities to share what I do at the library with students. Another workshop I did recently combined my background (although limited) in scholarly communication on how to publish in STEM for the first time, with the engineering and scholarly communications librarian. Finding opportunities that I can focus on for the short-term also allows me to get projects from ideation to delivery effectively while showing progress in my skills and knowledge as a new librarian.
Finding the Small Joys
There is a rising internet star in South Korea, an editor named Kim Min-Kyung of the publisher Min-um-sa. Her attitude towards life is something that I have been finding refreshing these days. For example, if someone was talking for a really long time and was going on and on about something that I couldn’t follow, instead of cutting them off verbally, she would instead internally think inside her head like, “Wow, how long can this person talk for, this is amazing,” or “Wow, would I be ever able to talk as long as them,” to create some fun and excitement in situations that would otherwise be difficult to quietly sit through. Ways I took some of her advice in my work is finding a laughing buddy at work ie. someone who I would have an easy time communicating or talking to on the daily, finding a peaceful spot on campus to read at, putting holds on books and DVDs in the collection to pick up before work, and going to events on campus from student symposiums, community lectures, to Indigenous walks.
Concluding Thoughts
As new graduates start to look for work, and as old graduates’ contracts run out, the job market is starting to come alive with new positions and deadlines and stress, but also with the excitement of new positions and beginnings. Uncertainty and ambiguity are some unavoidable aspects academia that I hope will change (or are they avoidable?), but like all things in institutions, change is slow, and so for now, we can only do the best with what we have by being kind and showing gratitude wherever possible. I purposely avoided talking about the negative aspects of contract work in the post as that list is just endless. However, I am happy to connect with any library students or others on contract if anyone needs a set of ears to rant on!
Sending you hugs and good vibes from Iowa, Lisa! I hope your job search is as painless as possible, and I know you’ll land somewhere awesome! I’m on a three-year term, so I totally know what you mean about the difficulties of navigating the short-term nature of a position (especially because so much of our work requires long-term, strategic relationship-building). It’s hard, because sometimes you feel like you can’t be as effective in the position as you could be.
@Eleanor Thank you for your kind words Eleanor! Hopefully we will find the right roles for us soon 🙂 I went to an emotional regulation workshop recently and learned that I am guilty of toxic positivity, so this title definitely did not age well haha..
Lisa, thanks for writing this post. As a librarian on contract at a special library, I have definitely struggled with the precarity of my position and how it impacts my ability to make decisions at work and beyond. Thanks for providing actionable steps to help make the experience a bit more manageable.
@Joshlyn Thank you so much for your comment, Joshlyn, I am so glad you found this post. Wishing you the best for you and your career :)!!