Creative Inspiration

So the “story” of my experience is essentially over but it was, of course, not for naught. All the situations that we get ourselves into inform who we are and in this case, provide creative inspiration! The comics are just too much fun. Stay tuned.

Final Afterthought on That Story…

A place that calls itself Library, where:

• There is no respect for new ideas.
• Expressing opinions is discouraged.
• Information is selectively shared.
• There is no concern for student’s ease of finding information.
• Librarians don’t find service to students to be a priority.
• Books are disrespected.

Needs a new name!

Afterthoughts 3

The psychological make-up of co-workers can make or break an experience. Remember the following:

• Asking questions about why things are done in a particular manner is not appreciated when there are no good/logical answers.
• Trying to make things work better threatens those who are invested in doing things the old way.
• Fragile egos are a major roadblock to creative solutions.
• Those who are attracted to union positions may be focused on job security.
• Those who are attracted to tenure positions may be focused on job security.
• The work dynamic in a union/tenure environment may be impossible to change because employees are focused on job security and:

will not leave,
will not change,
will be difficult or impossible to remove.

Afterthoughts 2

Dangerous cultural beliefs in the Library workplace include:

• Faculty status is a sacred status.
• Tenured faculty are in charge.
• Non-tenure faculty should shut up.
• Faculty members are better than staff members.

Each of these indicates a very narrow life-view and a need to control others that is counterproductive to a happy workplace.

Afterthoughts 1

Red flags for those interviewing for Library position:

• Too many locked doors may be a sign of deeper issues.
• Watch out for faculty members that seem too excited about you – they may be desperate for an ally …
• Beware of situations where staff members won’t make eye contact with faculty.
• Make sure to have time to meet and speak with staff, away from faculty.
• Get a clear picture of alliances and ask for in depth information about how decisions are made.
• Ask about tenured faculty attitudes toward new ideas.
• Be cautious of Long-timer Librarians that have been there “forever”. They may have the innate need to control compounded by the feeling their are entitled to control.
• When the outgoing librarian says a co-worker has control issues, explore that comment thoroughly.