Does your job title get it done?

Thanks to Meryl and Guy over on LinkedIn, I recently read a blog posting at the Harvard Business Review by Bill Taylor titled "Does Your Job Title Get the Job Done?" It got me thinking a lot about the ever-present discussions about job titles - how what we are called impacts so many things. It's a light-sounding article ("Lodestar of the 21st century"? Really?) with a serious focus in the middle.

There are two lines in the article that really got my attention: "Their work truly mattered to them, and how their work got described to the world mattered as well," and "People do their best work when they do work they love — which means it's work that somehow connects with their unique skills, talents, and passions."

Isn't that us? No matter what we're called - and every year the list gets longer - we tend to be in this profession with a passion; because we love what we do. (Sadly, it's not to get rich.) While, yes, I'm one of those people who feels strongly that "the L word" shouldn't be discarded, when it comes down to it, it doesn't matter what we're called as long as we get that job done.

(PS: I am now starting a campaign to get my formal title changed to what everyone here calls me, which is Information Goddess.)

Currently 85° and 63%Rh. Yes, it's monsoon season!

UNT LISSA: The Interview

I was pleased to be interviewed recently by Angel Durr of the University of North Texas Library & Information Sciences Student Association - and she posted the interview today. Thank you for the opportunity, Angel, and for the kind words!

Effing Does Quiet

So, there's this guy, you know? the.effing.librarian. Irreverent, humorous, librarianish, all that stuff. He's also written a really interesting post on the history of "The Quiet Librarian," where he started out looking for the earliest published reference he could find on the shushing thing, and found a whole treasure-trove of information about the early days of librarianship and the never-ending battle with image. In answer to the questions posed at the end of the post, I agree, it's like a pendulum... but my favorite line is the last one:

"Maybe it keeps us interesting. It keeps everyone guessing about us. If so, that's kinda cool."

Indeed!

Not what you think!

Via the amusingly-named blog "How may I shush you today?" via-via @jokrausdu, I'm pleased to bring you a great public service announcement at Ignite Lansing from two staff members of the Capital Area District Library in Lansing, MI:

LSW does Code Monkey

I know, I'm late, but hey! Here we are! (Yes, that's me in the coffee scene, and my son's monkey in the coffee and job scene.) The LSW? Totally amazing group of folks.



Bow down to the LSW! Also bow down to Jonathan Coulton, because really, you just should.

Time for a New Design

I redesigned the blog site using some of the new Blogger templating tools and a CC-licensed Flickr photo from Ken Lund (who takes great photos of the desert). I like it a lot; for anyone who actually visits the blog to read it (rather than via RSS), I hope you like it too.

ObWeatherWoot: Monsoon's coming!

We now return you to our regularly scheduled programming...