Interviews, Success Stories

Quaid Long …Success Story

This interview is over 1 year old and may no longer be up to date or reflect the interviewee/interviewees’ positions

My interview with success story Quaid!

Naomi: How did you find your current job?
Quaid: Like most of us – scouring multiple job sites and listservs every day and networking (although not as much as I should – it’s a skill I’m constantly trying to improve).

Naomi: Favorite library you have been to?
Quaid: I know it’s cliche, but I’d have to say the Library of Congress. It’s like a big, beautiful, library nerd church. Second place would go to the little branch library behind my dad’s fire station back home in Alexandria, Louisiana. He used to take me there when I was a kid to get books for my science fair projects.

Naomi: Favorite book?
Quaid: Hmmm…that’s like being asked to choose my favorite Mariah song, which is impossible! 3 of my favorite books, in no particular order, are: Girlfriend in a Coma (Douglas Coupland); The Picture of Dorian Gray (Oscar Wilde); and Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein.

Naomi: Favorite thing about libraries/library technology?
Quaid: Oh yes–the awesome NYPL iPhone app with the barcode thingy! Also, metadata.

Naomi: Any websites or feeds or blogs we should be following?
Quaid: This has absolutely nothing to do with library jobs, but I highly recommend 27bslash6.com (he’s also on Twitter @27bslash6). It’s just weird. However, if you’re deathly afraid of snakes (like I am), DO NOT read the entry titled “Shannon Eats Lunch.” Trust me.

Naomi: Best piece of job hunting advice?
Quaid: I’ve been out of work for 3 years (part of which was spent getting my MLIS), so it’s been a long, rough road. In addition to the usual (networking, targeted cover letters, LinkedIn, etc.), I’d say:

  • Be diligent: It WILL happen!
  • Be courteous: Never burn bridges…ours is a small, tight-knit community, and we’re good about looking after our own.
  • Be realistic: Dream big, but don’t waste time applying for jobs you don’t want or for which you know you shouldn’t be applying.
  • Be optimistic, even when it’s difficult and not completely sincere.
  • Be kind to yourself and to others.
  • Take a tropical vacation at least once (if you can afford it).
  • Exercise!

Quaid Long has over 10 years of library and archive experience, beginning at the University of Minnesota Bio-Medical Library, where he served in various capacities, from page to circulation and reference assistant to accounting assistant. After receiving his B.A. in American Studies and Journalism, he worked in both academic and corporate law libraries, followed by a six-year foray into the Manhattan mortgage world. In 2009, Quaid began the MLIS program at Pratt SILS and graduated in May 2011. During his time at Pratt, he worked part-time at the ACLU National Archives and an Archives and Records Management Assistant. Quaid will soon be starting his new job as the Interlibrary Loan Coordinator at New York law firm Hughes, Hubbard & Reed. Quaid’s favorite things are dogs, pop divas, all things Canadian (especially Douglas Coupland), making comfort foods in his slow cooker, and tropical vacations.

Photo used with permission, also previously entitled Quaid Long …In Six and published on 3/13/12

Naomi House

Naomi House, MLIS, is the founder and publisher of the popular webzine and jobs list INALJ.com (formerly I Need a Library Job) and former CMO (Chief Marketing Officer) of T160K.org, a crowdfunding platform focused on African patrimony, heritage and cultural projects. INALJ was founded in October 2010 with the assistance of her fellow Rutgers classmate, Elizabeth Leonard. Its social media presence has grown to include Facebook (retired in 2016), Twitter and a LinkedIn group, in addition to the interviews, articles and jobs found on INALJ. INALJ has had over 21 Million page hits and helped many, many thousands of librarians find employment! Through grassroots marketing, word of mouth and a real focus on exploring unconventional resources for job leads, INALJ grew from a subscription base of 20 friends to a website with over 500,000 visits in one month. Naomi believes that well-sourced quantity is quality in this narrow job market and INALJ reflects this with many new jobs published daily. She has also written for the 2011, 2012 and 2013 LexisNexis Government Info Pro and many other publications in the past decade. She presents whenever she can, including serving on three panels at the American Library Association's Annual Conference in Las Vegas; as breakout presenter at OCLC EMEA in Cape Town, South Africa; as a keynote speaker at the Virginia Library Association annual meeting; at the National Press Club in Washington DC; McGill University in Montreal, Canada; the University of the Emirates, Dubai, MLIS program and the University of Hawaii at Manoa. Naomi was a Reference, Marketing and Acquisitions Librarian for a contractor at a federal library outside Washington, DC, and has been living and working in Budapest, Hungary and Western New York State. She spent years running her husband’s moving labor website, fixed and sold old houses and assisted her husband cooking delicious Pakistani food. She is preparing to re-enter the workforce and is job hunting. Her husband is now the co-editor of INALJ, a true support!  She has heard of spare time but hasn’t encountered it lately. She pronounces INALJ as eye-na-elle-jay. 

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