Cover Letters: They’re Kind of a BIG DEAL! by Natalie Browning, Senior Assistant, INALJ DC Cover Letter. Letter of Interest. I dare you to find a job posting that does not require you to write a letter about your qualifications. Sending in a resume is not enough; the hiring committee wants to see not only…
So, you have an interview? by Amy Steinbauer, Senior Assistant, INALJ California I am having a bit of an interview streak. In the past month, I have been on 8 job interviews, and they have all been extremely different. Hopefully, one will pan out into a real job! The following examples mostly pertain to a public…
There’s a Twitter Chat for That by Naomi Gonzalez, Senior Assistant, INALJ Virginia For those of you who spend what could be called an inordinate amount of time online (ahem), the world of Twitter chats is probably not new ground to you. For those that prefer to spend your time in the physical realm…
3 tips for learning to speak-up and share ideas in your first professional role by Lauren Bourdages, Senior Assistant, INALJ Ontario I’m in my first professional library support staff role, I split my time between two departments/teams; I am also someone who gets really anxious about sharing ideas or speaking up in group settings, for…
Four questions to ask before applying to a for-profit university library job by Rebekah Kati, Senior Assistant, INALJ North Carolina Libraries at for-profit universities are pretty mysterious. For-profit universities have libraries and some employ MLS-holding librarians, but accounts of for-profit librarianship are scarce. I spent four years working as a librarian at a large,…
Staying in Touch: Moving On Doesn’t Have To Mean Cutting Ties by Cassidy Charles, Senior Assistant, INALJ NYC Staying in contact with someone after a move or a transition is rough. You go from seeing them on a regular basis or communicating regularly to not seeing them as much and infrequent talks. You get…
7 Tips for Moving Past Job Search Rejection by Erin Kinney, Senior Assistant, INALJ Wyoming There are several strategies for coping with rejection of any kind, not just during the job hunt. Rejection on the job hunt has been covered on INALJ, but a refresher is always good. Process Your Emotions It is natural to feel angry…
Taking Chances and Blooming Where You are Planted by Heidi Greathouse, Senior Assistant, INALJ New Mexico So, you may be in a situation in which you haven’t found your dream library job yet or even a library job at all and still are looking. You may be in library school and will be graduating…
Librarian Certification and Good Vibrations by Rose Noel, Senior Assistant, INALJ Kentucky I felt the vibrations as I entered the library. There was a new energy pulsing through the beautiful, but normally serene public library building. I wondered as I stuffed my purse into a spare employee locker whether I had forgotten a particularly grand…
So You Want to be a Librarian: is it necessary to visit libraries in person? by Emily Woodcock, Senior Assistant, INALJ Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island The short answer is YES! While enrolled in the MLIS program at Western University in London, Ontario, I have gone on tours of a number of different libraries and information…
Celebrating Women’s History Month – Susan Sosin: Library Friend Extraordinaire by Tracy Wasserman, Senior Assistant, INALJ Florida Susan Sosin’s volunteer work for libraries and other community organizations is an important part of her life. From an early age growing up in Highland Park, New Jersey, Susan learned the significance and impact of volunteering her time…
Have you contributed content to your library’s website? by Katherine Kimball Adelberg, Senior Assistant, INALJ Michigan If you haven’t yet, it’s only a matter of time. Think of all the pieces of content on your library’s website: event listings, ebook download instructions, lists of services, how to get a library card, research guides, blog posts…that’s…
Resume Missteps & Solutions by Amy Steinbauer, Senior Assistant, INALJ California The job search is a messy, complicated game of employment. It can seem like all of the hiring factors are out of your control. You get excited at job ads and prospects, send your resume and cover letter in, and wait, and wait, and wait.…
Mining Your State Library by Tracy Wasserman, Senior Assistant, INALJ Florida State libraries are information resource providers for their state governments, serving the information needs of state agency employees and the state legislature. That’s their first mission. Their other mission? To collect and preserve the published history of their state. The State of Florida, for…
Don’t Discount the Digital Community by Sarah Morrison, Senior Assistant, INALJ Alberta and INALJ Manitoba I’ve noticed an underlying feeling that pervades discussion of the internet, introversion, and community. It’s one of those things that isn’t always explicit, and I don’t have one or two “exposé” links to point to for proof. But there seems…
Techniques, books, and e-books for the young, unengaged reader Melodi Pulliam, Senior Assistant, INALJ Kentucky I would like to tell you all a little story. My son has ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder) and I am sure we all know someone (or know someone who knows someone) who has a child that has been diagnosed with…
5 Strategies for Dealing with Problem Behavior by Ruth Harries, Senior Assistant, INALJ Kansas I’ve worked in public services for the past seven years, and my experience has been that the majority of transactions with patrons are emotionally neutral. Truly memorable experiences with patrons – whether good or bad – are rarer, but they…
Using LinkedIn to Facilitate the Job Search By Svetlana Symonenko, INALJ California Social networks have become the channel of choice for the latest news, friends’ updates, deals, local events, weekend ideas, and many other things. But, how commonly are they used to search for jobs and/or promote yourself in the job market? Not long ago,…
6 Tips for a Successful Workday by Annice Sevett, Senior Assistant, INALJ Minnesota It’s the end of your work day and you can’t wait to get out of there and on with your nighttime activities. You’re ready to turn off your computer and pack up your bag, but not so fast. Did you know…
To Jargon or Not to Jargon (Library Edition) by Natalie Browning, Senior Assistant, INALJ DC Circulation, Overdue, Hold Request, ILL (Inter-Library Loan), Peer-Review. As librarians and library workers, we not only know what these words mean, but we use them in conversation often. Whether you’ve studied for a MLS degree or have spent any…
When in Doubt, Take the Practicum By Rose Noel, Senior Assistant, INALJ Kentucky I have been in school since 2009; I am only just tackling my second semester of library school this spring. It would be an understatement to disclose that I’m feeling a little bit of burnout. In that time, I have gone…
7 Tips for Getting to Know Your New Community by Annice Sevett, Senior Assistant, INALJ Minnesota Like many of us in our profession, I moved to a new town for my first and current library job. As the new Adult Services Librarian, I was faced with the task of getting to know this new…
How Do You Know When it is Time to Go? by Rebekah Kati, Senior Assistant, INALJ North Carolina Leaving a job that you have put significant time and emotional investment into can be difficult to contemplate and it is easy to miss the warning signs – I know it was for me! I felt…
Library Makerspaces: libraries are places to learn and create by Erin Kinney, Senior Assistant, INALJ Wyoming Makerspaces, also known as hackerspaces, hackspaces, or fablabs, are DIY creative spaces where people gather to invent, create, and learn. As David Lankes said “imagine libraries are places to learn and create, not consume and check out.” Library makerspaces have been…
5 Songs to Get You Moving By Naomi Gonzales, Senior Assistant, INALJ Virginia Okay, admit it. Even though you LOVE what you do, there are some days you just can’t get yourself out of bed or in the right mindset for the job. Sometimes you wake up and the will to work just isn’t there. So…