Tag Archive for blog

8 must haves for going to a Library Conference

by Emily Woodcock, Senior Assistant, INALJ Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island 8 must haves for going to a Library Conference In the near future, I am going to be attending my first library conference. I am going to the OLA Super Conference in Toronto, Ontario at the end of this month. I haven’t been to…

Comics You May Have Missed in 2014

by Stephanie Noell, Senior Editor   Comics You May Have Missed in 2014 I love lists. Whether it’s in Mental Floss Magazine, the Lambda Literary Awards, or grocery lists, I enjoy reading them. While many choose to write end-of-year lists on the best comics out there, I thought it might be prudent to create a…

One Year Done: Lessons from my first year of work!

by Amy Steinbauer, Senior Assistant, INALJ California One Year Done: Lessons from my first year of work!   By the time this is published, I will have my first year of professional library experience under my belt! It has been a really crazy and mixed up year. My personal life has been full of grief and…

Ask a Special Librarian

Ask a Special Librarian Tracy Z. Maleeff Library Resources Manager at Duane Morris LLP in Philadelphia @LibrarySherpa & LibrarySherpa.com Greetings, INALJers! This is the first installment of my new “Ask a Special Librarian” column for the INALJ.com site. I’ve gathered that there are many myths, misconceptions and misunderstandings about special librarianship through my interactions during…

Your Unofficial Guide to Socializing at ALA Midwinter Meeting 2015

by Holly Boyer, former INALJ Senior Editor Your Unofficial Guide to Socializing at ALA Midwinter Meeting 2015 Going to Chicago later this month? Great! I bet you’ve got a pretty good idea which sessions you’ll be attending. You’re going to learn so much and bring all that Midwinter energy and enthusiasm back to work with you.…

Why I Love INALJ

By Angie Solis, Senior Editor Why I Love INALJ One year ago I began volunteering for an amazing organization – INALJ.  My time at INALJ has been not only a fulfilling one, but an educational one.  I never thought that I would volunteer for an organization that would allow me to help other professionals in…

5 ways to de-stress during a long job search

By Brad McNally, Senior Editor 5 ways to de-stress during a long job search Searching for a job takes a huge amount of effort. When the job search is unexpected, or goes longer than you originally thought it would, you can definitely begin feeling the stress. Some people even feel like finding a new job…

7 Great Sites for Academic Librarians

by R.C. Miessler, former Head Editor, INALJ Indiana previously published 2/13/14 7 Great Sites for Academic Librarians Whether you are currently employed by an academic library or are looking for a career in one, keeping up to date on the fun, exciting, and soul-crushing world of higher education is of vital import. It’s pretty easy…

Is Honesty Really the Best Policy in Interviews?

by Caitlin Moen, former Head Editor, INALJ Louisiana previously published 2/13/14 Is Honesty Really the Best Policy in Interviews? I’ve been thinking a lot about HOW honest to be in a job interview or in a conversation with someone who is a possible contact for an opportunity. This came up recently for me as I…

Debunking 10 Librarian Misconceptions

by Aimee Graham, former Head Editor, INALJ New York State previously published 3/24/14 Debunking 10 Librarian Misconceptions Whether I have physically been in a library, running errands, talking to family and friends, or during social events I have been presented with a similar series of questions when I inform others that I am a librarian.…

The Key to Your New Job is You: Self-Care During the Job Hunt

by Kate Kosturski, Senior Editor and Volunteer Coordinator previously published 3/31/14 The Key to Your New Job is You: Self-Care During the Job Hunt While your resume/CV, cover letter, and other professional presence are vital to landing your new job, don’t overlook another key component of the puzzle:  you.   All those documents I mentioned above…

Why Frozen’s “Let it Go” is the Perfect Job Hunting Anthem

by Fallon Bleich, Senior Assistant, INALJ Arkansas previously published 3/12/14 Why Frozen’s “Let it Go” is the Perfect Job Hunting Anthem I’m obsessed with all things Disney. I’ve been to Disney World five times and Disney Land once; I’ve seen every film at least twice; and I collect both the pins and the Vinylmations. I love me…

Ten Conference Tips for a First Timer

by Leigh Milligan, Head Editor, INALJ Pennsylvania previously published 2/21/14 Ten Conference Tips for a First Timer Last weekend, I went to my first big library conference, ALA Mid-Winter in Philadelphia, PA. I was very nervous and jittery going into this conference. It was my first conference, and I went by myself since my other librarian friends had…

The Art of Finding Room to Grow in Your Current Job

by Kristen Jaques, former Head Editor, INALJ Maine previously published 1/16/14 The Art of Finding Room to Grow in Your Current Job While those of us who currently have jobs in or related to our field are fortunate, many underemployed librarians and information professionals will tell you that this can be a mixed blessing.  Harsh…

Translating Non-Library Skills to a Library-Directed Résumé

by Joe Hudak, MLIS previously published 1/13/14 Translating Non-Library Skills to a Library-Directed Résumé It’s easier to get a job as a professional librarian if you’re already working in a library. But it’s not always easy to get a job in a library if you’ve never worked in one before. One way to improve your…

New Year’s Resolutions in the Library

by Scottie Kapel, former head editor, INALJ Oregon previously published 1/24/14 New Year’s Resolutions in the Library I typically forgo making New Year’s Resolutions simply because I don’t want to set myself up for failure. However, now that I’m finally in my career and have a few months in the job under my belt, I…

What your “Friends” can do for you?

by Shayna Monnens, former Head Editor, INALJ South Dakota previously published 1/16/14 What your “Friends” can do for you? Does your library have a Friends of the Library? Chances are good that there is! If so, are you a member? Do you know how to join? Are there opportunities to improve your volunteer skills (because…

December 2014 Roundup (INALJ Stats)

A great end to 2014! What a great month!  Another fantastic December! Our busiest day in December was 19,622 views on 12/1, and our busiest week had 105,031 views, and our month was 397,632 views! We also hit 9 million page views in total and nearly 9.5 million! Fantastic!  My big news for the month was the introduction of the 2015…

Gift Ideas for the Librarian in Your Life

by Sarah Roark Schott, former Head Editor, INALJ Arizona previously published 11/18/13 Gift Ideas for the Librarian in Your Life With the holidays right around the corner, I am sure many of you have started thinking about what to get that special Information Professional in your life. While searching for neat library/archive/book related gifts I…

What Does a Librarian Do – Academic

by Rebecca Tischler, Senior Editor, INALJ North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon What Does a Librarian Do – Academic I recently wrote an article about what a librarian does, so I thought I would continue that with a series of articles exploring what different types of librarians do. Because while all librarians share a central duty…

Library School Redux

by Amelia Zavala Vander Heide ,Senior Editor, INALJ Massachusetts, Maryland, and Virtual Work Library School Redux If I knew then what I know now, I probably would have done some things differently, including taking a different course load in library school. This article is for those INALJ readers who are either currently in library school or are…

Repetitive strain injuries are a real pain

by Holly Boyer, Senior Editor, INALJ Utah, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia  Repetitive strain injuries are a real pain I bet you use your computer a lot. Aside from all your work related computer use, you come home and get right back on, don’t you? Are you making sure that you’re protecting yourself from injury? Or are you…