by Rebecca Ciota 8 Reasons Informational Interviews are Useful I have always been a thinker and a planner. My mother recounts several times when, as a child, in a toy store, I would consider which toy would be the best purchase. If I was like that before I can even remember, it is no wonder…
by Diana La Femina, Senior Editor, INALJ Canada previously published 5/16/13 5 Right Questions for an Informational Interview I can’t remember how I first heard about informational interviews, but I now believe them to be one of the most powerful and underutilized tools in any professional’s repertoire. (And by “professional” I mean anyone who’s serious…
by Lauren Bourdages, Head Editor, INALJ Ontario Informational Interviewing strategies for the Introverted and/or Socially Anxious* *Tips will work for anyone but this is my frame of reference! I am actually an ambivert, I am also someone who has moderate social anxiety (not clinically diagnosed mind you), which has actually gotten better as I get older,…
by Kasia Piasecka reposting from 1/26/12 and 3/28/12 Networking on LinkedIn: Informational Interviews vs. Librarianesque Stalking Personally, I enjoy meeting new people online in the interest of making new friends, business associates, tennis partners, pals to toss hackey sack, and yes, you guessed it, for the purpose of gaining knowledge from an informational interview. I…
by Chelsea Jordan-Makely . . . . .Informational Interview These past few months, I’ve been practicing off-road job searching, pursuing a library job through unconventional means. I live in Oregon, a slow library job market, and days would pass when no new jobs were posted. So, I took it upon myself to “knock on some…
by Leigh Milligan, Head Editor, INALJ Pennsylvania and former Head Editor of INALJ Wisconsin Informational Interviewing: A Unique Way to Learn about Libraries and Network at the Same Time One technique in networking and job-hunting that I have been interested in as of late is informational interviewing. I read a blog post on INALJ last…
This is an interview with Kate Tkacik, Director of Development at St. John’s College in Annapolis, MD, done by Naomi House of INALJ. This is part of INALJ’s 2020 series on non-library jobs for library workers. On Development & Prospect Research Work : an Interview with Kate Tkacik Q1: Thanks so much for taking the…
This is an interview with Adaliz N. Cruz, Information Services Assistant at Bain & Company, done by Naomi House of INALJ. This is part of INALJ’s 2020 series on non-library jobs for library workers. On Information Services Work : an Interview with Adaliz N. Cruz Q1: Thanks so much for taking the time to help…
by Veda Darby Soberman, former Head Editor, INALJ Hawaii 3 Ways to Get Your Mojo Back Perhaps you joined the fray of job seekers full of hope and confidence, but searching for a library job can be a difficult road. You could grow quite disheartened as time passes with little or no job prospects, as…
by Leigh Milligan, Senior Editor previously published 8/11/14 Jobs! Got to Catch Them All!! I love Pokémon games! I have been playing Pokémon since the red and blue editions were on Game Boy. I am now playing the newest one Pokémon X for 3DS and I can’t put it down. I love that there are so many…
Ask a Special Librarian – April Edition Tracy Z. Maleeff Library Resources Manager at Duane Morris LLP in Philadelphia @LibrarySherpa & LibrarySherpa.com No money, more problems? I once overheard someone lament, “I can’t even afford to job hunt right now.” It’s true that it could be a costly proposition to get new clothes, business cards and…
Ask a Special Librarian – March Edition Tracy Z. Maleeff Library Resources Manager at Duane Morris LLP in Philadelphia @LibrarySherpa & LibrarySherpa.com Spring cleaning time is almost upon us. It’s a good way to clear out some cobwebs, air some things out and just prepare for a new season of your life. Yes, I’m…
Ask a Special Librarian Tracy Z. Maleeff Library Resources Manager at Duane Morris LLP in Philadelphia @LibrarySherpa & LibrarySherpa.com Lucky for you, the special librarian saw a shadow and now we have at least six more weeks of the “Ask a Special Librarian” column! I was thrilled to see the great response from my inaugural installment of…
by Naomi House, MLIS Top 25 INALJ Articles of 2014 We are very lucky at INALJ to have some amazing bloggers and guest bloggers. In 2014 these were the most widely read articles/blog posts. At the very end of this posting you will find the top 125 blog posts for 2014 along with their page…
by Veda Darby Soberman, former Head Editor, INALJ Hawaii previously published 8/7/13 Response to Rejection: A Networking Opportunity All job seekers will have been rejected for a position or two…or many. Those letters, phone calls or emails can each feel like a stab in the heart of to one’s hopes and dreams, but it doesn’t…
by Diana La Femina, Senior Editor, INALJ Newfoundland and Labrador, Northwest Territories, New Brunswick, Manitoba, British Columbia, Alberta Some Advice Across the Board: Job Hunting Advice for Everyone! I’ve been giving some advice to a job hunter in my life outside of librarianship, and I realized that a lot of the advice I’m giving him can…
by Mary-Michelle Moore, Senior Editor previously published 8/29/13 The Job Hunter’s Lament Being a job hunter is not easy. In any economy, in any environment, this is one of the hardest things that you can undergo, job searching is tough. When you think about it, your job influences the rest of your life and relationships…
by Billy Hinshaw, former Assistant, INALJ Minnesota previously published 12/18/13 So You Want to Be a Law Librarian? Law librarianship is a great career avenue for those who either a) are library professionals interested in legal work, or b) are former attorneys or legal professionals seeking an alternate career. Regardless of background, law librarians use…
by Naomi House, MLIS, INALJ Founder and Editor Strategizing for the Job Hunt In October 2013 I was not only furloughed but also lost my job in the great and tremendously wasteful federal government shutdown. I wrote an article Furloughed & Job Hunting: why strategizing 1st is the key to success, with advice about what…
Lauren graduated from the Library & Information Technician program at Conestoga College in 2013 with the highest mark in the program that year. She focused on a few different areas of interest, Records & Information Management, Metadata and Digital Initiatives, and Library Instruction (Information Literacy & Emergent Technologies). She is currently working as…
I grew up in Philadelphia, PA and I currently live with my fiancé and black cat in Levittown, PA, a small suburb outside Philadelphia. We are getting married in May 2015. I graduated from West Chester University in 2008 with two degrees in English Literature and Theatre Arts. I graduated from Drexel University…
by Diana La Femina, Head Editor, INALJ South Carolina How to Thrive After a Set-Back Sometimes things happen in your professional life that you have no control over. The secret is to think of how you can turn these events into opportunities. (Easier said than done, I know.) In my usual way, I’ll explain with an example from…
Angie Solis, Head Editor, INALJ Missouri So I’ve graduated library school… Now what? As I write this on the eve of my graduation from library school I find myself caught up in feelings of joy, fear, worry, happiness and relief. The feelings of elation come from the fact that I can stand up and proudly announce: “I have…
by Naomi House, MLIS Letting Go of “Librarian” I love discussing INALJ’s scope and strategy for finding jobs with anyone and everyone I meet. Often those who are familiar with our INALJ Jobs pages are curious as to why we post more than just the traditional librarian jobs. Either they are unfamiliar with some of…
by Naomi House, MLIS 7 (Must-Have) Tools for Your Job Hunting Kit Most of us already use tools in our job hunt but what we may not be doing is using them together. Tools are different from characteristics and attitudes because they are things that you use- not aspects of who you are. Especially where…