Info Career Trends May 1, 2003 vol. 4, no. 3 ISSN 1532-0839 Published by Lisjobs.com - http://www.lisjobs.com E-mail: editor@lisjobs.com In This Issue (Building Your Career): 1) Editor's Note 2) Career Q&A From the Library Job People 3) Librarianship: Not Just a Job, a Career 4) Where Do You Go When There Is No Up? 5) Laid Off Twice At Age 30 6) Growth Through Change 7) Charting Your Course 8) What's Online? Recommended Resources 9) But I Want To Hold It In My Hand! Print Resources 10) Administrivia, Copyright, Subscription and Removal Instructions ======== Editor's Note There comes a time in every librarian's career to ask: "Where do I go from here?" This issue's contributors have answered that question in a variety of ways, showing some of the different paths and possibilities available to today's information professionals. Also find the debut Q&A column from "The Library Job People," co- written by myself and Sarah L. Nesbeitt, and, as always, online and offline resources to help you along your own professional path. It's so easy to get caught up in the day-to-day that we tend sometimes to neglect our own careers and professional development. I hope that these stories and resources will inspire you to spend some time thinking about how you want to build your own career, where you want to go, and how you intend to get there. - Rachel (editor@lisjobs.com) ======== Career Q&A From the Library Job People Q: Do you have advice for someone on how to get a professional public libraries job in a particular state, Vermont to be specific. I foresee having to go where the jobs are but I will pose the question anyway... I have looked on the ALA Regional Employment site as well as looking on the Vermont Libraries page but it did not give clues as to how vacancies are posted or jobs are applied for or acquired. Are unsolicited resumes welcome in the state? Are vacancies filled from a civic pool of applicants? Does one apply at a state or local level? Do public library jobs have residency requirements? Signed, Vermont Job Seeker RSG: First, it's great that you're being realistic about possibly having to "go where the jobs are" - smaller states or those near a number of library schools often have fewer positions, and a glut of graduates applying for what does come available. Since you're specifically looking for public library jobs in Vermont, however, you'll want to start by keeping an eye on web sites that provide local job listings. The Vermont Library Association sponsors a jobline ( http://www.vermontlibraries.org/jobs.html ), and you'll also want to take a look at the Simmons GSLIS New England Jobline ( http://www.simmons.edu/gslis/resources/jobline.html ). Then, you will need to broaden your approach. Locate local public libraries through Libweb ( http://sunsite.berkeley.edu/Libweb/ ), visit their web sites, and look for position openings that may be posted on individual library pages but not in the more general databases. SLN: Also, because many public library positions are advertised only locally, it's worth checking the classified ad sections of newspapers. Many times, the online version will be more convenient than the print, because you can frequently search the classifieds by keyword. To locate them, try web sites such as Newspapers.com ( http://www.newspapers.com ) or Newspaperlinks.com ( http://www.newspaperlinks.com ). In general, ads are posted whenever a job comes open, and they will mention a position title, brief description of the position, and application directions. In most cases, public library positions are filled at the local level, and librarians working for public libraries are usually considered employees of the city/town/ village/etc. where the library is located. If the library is an independent taxing district, you will be considered an employee of that institution, rather than the municipality. When you see the application directions on an ad, it should be clear who is doing the hiring - you'll want to apply directly, following the directions in the ad. RSG: As to your last couple of questions, residency requirements vary depending on the institution. Larger municipalities will be more likely to require residency. (Chicago Public Library, for example, requires Chicago residency, while Chicago suburbs generally do not require residency in the respective town.) Requirements should be specified in the ad or in the general HR instructions on the city or library's web site. Some institutions/ municipalities will keep an applicant pool, some will not - again, this is often stated directly in the ad or on the web site. In general, you'll have better luck responding directly to advertised positions than sending an unsolicited resume - but check individual institutions' HR web sites, since some will include instructions for sending your resume to be included in the pool for the next set of openings. SLN: John Hubbard at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee has written a good overview on applying for a library job ( http://www.tk421.net/howto.html ), which has links to other relevant resources. There are a number of other relevant sites and publications to check besides the ones we've listed above. For example, ALA's own site updates its job listings daily, and many public libraries and library systems announce vacancies there. You'll also want to stay in touch with your alma mater. Most library schools have placement services or bulletins, some of which are available only to alumni. When you first begin looking, you'll want to cast your net as widely as possible so as not to miss out on any opportunities. This includes attending conferences when possible, especially ones specific to the state/region you're most interested in, participating in electronic discussion lists, and talking to people in person. In other words, you never know where an opportunity will turn up. Good luck! Do you have a question on library careers that you'd like to see answered in this column? Send it to libraryjobpeople@lisjobs.com. We regret that we cannot reply personally; representative questions will be chosen and answered in this column. Sarah L. Nesbeitt, Assistant Professor of Library Services at Eastern Illinois University, has written and spoken extensively on library career issues. Her web site is http://www.libraryjobpostings.org . She and Rachel Singer Gordon are coauthors of The Information Professional's Guide to Career Development Online (Information Today, 2002). Rachel Singer Gordon is editor and publisher, Info Career Trends, and webmaster of the library careers site Lisjobs.com. She is the author of The Accidental Systems Librarian (Information Today, 2003). ======== *** Post your resume online: http://www.lisjobs.com/resumes.htm ======== Librarianship: Not Just a Job, a Career by Dennie Heye (dennie at heye.nl) I had no firm career plan in 1989 when I started at the "Bibliotheek en Documentaire Informatie" school (the Dutch equivalent of Master of Information Science). I knew I wanted to work with people and computers - and, yes, reading was one of my hobbies. I had no real picture of what I wanted to be, but library school sounded like something I could like. During my first year at library school, though, I became convinced that this was indeed the right education for me; I learned to tackle people's information problems by using information technology in creative ways. Below, I'd like to share my career development experiences with you, and give you ideas for developing your own. At School During my 4-year education at the "Bibliotheek en Documentaire Informatie" school I realized that I wanted to enjoy a career as information professional. If I wanted more than "just a job," I knew I had to do more than just attend classes and do my homework. So: * I signed up to contribute to the monthly school magazine, first as an editor and later as editor-in-chief. This is how I learned to work with deadlines, work in a team and improve my writing skills. These experiences and skills were very important in all my jobs. * When choosing an internship, I would make my choice by asking myself these questions: What do I expect to learn, and what skills can I improve? (Rather than the criteria other students used: Does it pay, and do I have to travel for more than 30 minutes?) * After graduating from the "Bibliotheek en Documentaire Informatie" school, I pursued another three years at university studying "marketing and sociology for information products and services." I already had library skills, but felt that I wanted a college degree to get the type of job I wanted. By combing two educations, I am more "well-rounded," and can branch into marketing (an important topic for libraries!) if I want to. My First Job After graduation, I found a job for two months at an accounting firm. It was a short-term job, the work itself was not too exciting (cataloguing a backlog of books and articles), and I had to travel for 3.5 hours per day. But, I took it, because I wanted to get work experience. I also got the chance to work in a challenging organisation, and hoped that this short job would lead to more. During my first two weeks, I was often alone in the library while the manager (and only library staff member) was in meetings. So, when customers would come in with requests, I tried to help them by either answering their questions or making sure that they got an answer - which was appreciated, even if it wasn't part of my job profile. My being proactive, service minded, and willing to learn was noted, and I was invited to meet the general manager, who offered me a job as a librarian. Building a Career When I started my "real" job as a librarian, I wanted to have a challenging career in the dynamic world of information science. Here are some of my experiences and tips how I got the right jobs and never had a dull day: * Learn I became quite skilled in IT by talking to a lot of IT staff, who were eager to share their knowledge. I also benefited from different courses taught in the company: presentation and facilitation skills, project management, and fundamental IT courses. * Network By attending meetings, lunches and internal seminars in the organisation I met a lot of people. In this day and age, it's not always what you know, but also who you know, that is important in getting ahead. By using your network, you are informed of interesting projects - and sometimes jobs you might be interested in. Don't forget to build a network outside of your organisation. Join a professional association to meet peers and attend seminars. An occasional phone call or e-mail to people in your network is useful to keep you up to date and "in the picture." If you have the opportunity to attend a conference, talk with people who are in the same sessions, at lunch, or in the lobby. You will often find that you can learn something from everyone, and these contacts can be very useful later in your career. * Get Noticed To get ahead in your career, you have to be "in the picture." And that means "in the picture," not only to managers, but also to clients, colleagues and peers. Start an initiative, do presentations on subjects you're an expert on, publish an article in your organisation's newsletter or an industry journal, and participate in seminars. * Know What You Want Try to think of the career you want to have. What do you value in a job; what type of organisations would you like to work at; what skills would you like to acquire? Then, ask yourself how you will achieve those career objectives. Can you do so in your current job? In your current organisation? Who can help you? If you want to reach objectives not possible in your current job and organisation, don't be afraid to move on. A new job or organisation can give you new insights and career perspectives. Dennie Heye (dennie at heye.nl) is an information scientist with a global energy firm in the Netherlands. Certified as a librarian, his goal in life is to bring order to information chaos. ======== *** Find a library job! http://www.lisjobs.com ======== Where Do You Go When There Is No Up? By Leann Isaac, MLS (libraryconsults@hotmail.com) How many people do you know that truly love their job? How many of those people consider their work to be more than just a job, but, instead, a career? ... Now that you've narrowed that down, look around at the people remaining. Who are they, and where did they find this amazing employment opportunity that you somehow missed seeing in the job postings? Chances are, their job is really no better than yours. These people may just have figured out how to do what they love, in a situation that is ideal for their current needs - and that pays enough to fund the occasional cappuccino! "All this from one job?" you may ask. In all honesty, probably not. Information professionals who seem to have a genuine love of their job may just have hit upon their key to career success. If your dream job doesn't exist – invent it! Many of us find ourselves in situations where we have gone as high up the corporate ladder in our institution as we can. This is especially the case with solo information professionals; it's difficult to move to a higher position when you are the only one there. Luckily, this doesn't mean that you're necessarily stuck in a career quagmire or that you have to find another position with room to grow. You can help yourself to grow professionally right where you are. Following, find a few ways that I've found to broaden my horizons in the information field and add some great things to my resume. And I've done all of this from the comfort of my own home. Here's how you, too, can build the kind of career you'll love. Building Blocks for Career Success Step One: Look into other options. Do you know of another local business, individual or institution that may need the skills of an information professional? Consider becoming an independent library consultant. That's what I did. My full time job is as a solo medical librarian. Upon hearing that another local health system's librarian was leaving her position, I offered to help out until a replacement could be found. It turned out that I became that replacement! I worked up a contract with that health system to be their part-time library consultant, doing the majority of my work from home. I am doing many of the same things that I do in my full-time position, so the workload is not that taxing - and I did not need to learn additional skills. Use what you already know to gain additional experience - and additional money. You may be surprised at the job opportunities you will find when you network with others in your field or ask around in your community. With little else than word of mouth, you may find yourself presented with some unique opportunities. Step Two: Use your resources. Don't be afraid to make a leap when an opportunity presents itself, just because you've never done it before. You can learn by trial and error and by relying on the knowledge of your fellow information professionals. In my experience, I have found that many local information professionals and list members are more than willing to offer guidance and advice to their colleagues. Joining the appropriate professional organizations and e-mail lists will be the best thing you'll ever do career-wise. You'll keep up on the latest information and keep abreast of what's happening locally and globally in your chosen field. Make a name for yourself in the information professional community. Read the current information literature, be aware of the hot topics of the profession, join and participate in relevant online discussions, and take CE courses whenever possible. Join organizations, even if you cannot afford to attend meetings and conferences. Benefits of membership often come in the form of mailings, updates and web resources available to members only. Step Three: Try your hand at writing a few articles. Many journals and newsletters for information professionals are always looking for new material (and some even pay!). If you think you have something to say that may be of interest to your colleagues, go ahead and give it a shot. Publications will request either a full article or an article proposal to review your work for possible publication. To find writing opportunities, look through the professional journals you already receive. Sometimes column editors will post calls for submissions. Another way to find writing opportunities is on your professional lists. Journals sometimes post calls for reviewers or contributors to similarly-themed e-mail lists. Send a query to the editor of a publication you would like to write for, and you may find that they would like to publish your work. One article may lead to others. And publication always looks good on a resume. Building By Branching Out All of these things can help you to be a well-rounded information professional. Not only will you be showing the superiors at your primary workplace that you have the drive and initiative that will look great around review time, you will also be on the way to building a tailor-made career. Remember: just because it does not look like you can go up in your current position, look around – you may just be able to branch out. Leann Isaac (a 1997 graduate of the University of Pittsburgh School of Information Science) is the medical librarian for the Jameson Health System North and South campuses of New Castle, PA, as well as an independent library consultant for the Sharon Regional Health System of Sharon, PA. Leann also writes freelance articles and reviews for library-related publications. ======== Love the newsletter? Make a PayPal donation to its upkeep: https://www.paypal.com/xclick/business=rachel%40lisjobs.com ======== Laid Off Twice At Age 30 By Russ Singletary, MLIS (rpsingl@yahoo.com) Librarian-relatives of mine talked me into going to library school three years ago. Little did I anticipate that my completion of the MLIS program would precede two layoffs - but that's exactly what happened to me, as two consecutive high-tech employers disbanded their research departments during the recent economic downturn. I now work through a long-term contract with an Atlanta-based consultancy, and am assigned to the Corporate Strategy unit of a Fortune 100 communications company. I think part of my reason for landing this challenging, yet fun gig is my background in communications - something that the world at large does not often equate with librarianship. True, luck and timing had much to do with this. I can't help but think, however, that my background in print journalism and corporate communications has trained me to help others in facilitating their research dilemmas. At a time when we all are faced with the reality of the well-worn expression "let's do more with less," we are often left with two pillars to rest our strength on: well-charged ingenuity and diplomatic communicativeness. Hard work can only take us so far. In my case, my library career ended in two layoffs. On the other hand, maybe it just began then! Being laid off twice within 12 months before my 30th birthday, this Phi Beta Kappa, liberal-arts graduate began to question not only his chosen profession as special librarian cum analyst in the high- tech arena. I began to question the validity of librarianship and furthermore the true value of my own employability. Layoff Lessons I gave a presentation on virtual libraries last fall in Palm Springs, Calif., at the Internet Librarian conference. A large part of my talk I told from the heart, as a result of those layoffs. Layoffs may not seem to be a big deal for veterans of the American workplace. For librarians, it may be a different story, as our stereotypical personality may have accustomed us to the non-reality of doing high-quality work with the knowledge that "no good deed goes unrewarded." I've definitely refocused on my communications skills since the layoff, drawing from my background in public relations to promote the "value-adds" (in library-speak) that only a true researcher with a journalist's background could provide a client. I love being able to offer clients not only thoroughly researched materials but succinct, timely summaries packaged and tailored to their specific demands. It's almost like running your own newspaper, but you don't have to let the ink dry before getting readers' feedback. What else have I learned from my downsizings in corporate America? I hate to admit it, but to always be on the lookout for another job. Better yet, always be aware of why you do certain things better than others, why you enjoy this rather than that, and what you would ultimately like to do (for yourself!) with your background in research and librarianship. Back to Basics I've gotten much from my membership in two leading international professional associations: AIIP (the Association of Independent Information Professionals) and SLA (Special Libraries Association). The greatest return on my investment in membership in these groups has been the camaraderie with other information professionals, both in and out of the same boat I've been in. I've also rethought the role of ALA. Although I've never worn the hat "librarian," I've joined ALA and last year attended the group's annual meeting, as it was held in my town of Atlanta, GA. I'm drawn back to the basics, so to speak, and have gotten great value from the group's business reference area, among others. What's next for me? I'm not sure just yet. At some point, I'd like to run my own info-shop. The war in Iraq, the U.S. economy, and the recovery of the high-tech field (where my expertise lies) are all influencing my decision. I'm doing all I can, however, to make sure that the next step for me involves anything and everything but the recent past - which, in my case, would be another layoff! ;) Singletary is a consultant with the Cadence Group Inc. and assigned to the corporate strategy unit of an Atlanta-based Fortune 100 communications company. He holds an MLIS from the University of South Carolina and a BA from Wofford College, with additional education from universities in Quebec, Canada, and Paris, France. ======== Have technology responsibilities in your library? Check out The Accidental Systems Librarian! Information and links online at http://www.lisjobs.com/tasl/ . ======== Growth Through Change: From Archivist to Consultant by Valerie Nye (vnye@stlib.state.nm.us) I went to library school to become an archivist. After graduation, I found the perfect job as an archivist in a small university. The school valued professional development, and my supervisor encouraged learning and creativity. The job was an amazing stepping-stone into a wide variety of possible archives careers. Ultimately, this first job gave me the experience I needed to land an archives job in New Mexico - my home state, and one with very few archives jobs to offer. As I continued my archives career in New Mexico, however, I began to realize I was in a dead-end job. Not because there weren't higher positions in the agency, but because I was not interested in any of the management positions available in archives. I was also feeling a degree of burnout that I largely attributed to the lack of professional growth opportunities. The work I was doing in archives quickly became a job I had to do every day, rather than a career I wanted to grow. I began to question my original archives career choice, and wondered why I went to library school, if working in archives was not my ultimate career goal. For nearly a year I researched a myriad of career options both in and out of archives and libraries, my interests ranging from becoming a family counselor to starting a web design company. As I explored career options I tried to pinpoint the things about specific careers that would make me love my job again. During my investigation I began to keep a list of the tangible and intangible things I needed in my next career. Some of the items on that list included the ability to grow professionally and be treated as a professional, the chance to work with knowledgeable people, the opportunity to help people with important issues, and the desire to stay in New Mexico. I interviewed for two positions during my career re-evaluation period, a job as a cataloger/archivist in an academic environment and a public library consultant position with the State Library. I was offered the cataloging job, a job that paid a bit more than I was making as an archivist and had strong benefits. I wanted the excellent benefits, and the work environment was professional, but after four days of serious soul searching I realized I would not be helping people in the way I had imagined in my next career. It was difficult to turn down a job that seemed good on paper, but I had to believe there was a better opportunity available. Several months later, I was offered the public library consultant position with the State Library. This position allowed me to work with library directors and answer and research questions important to New Mexico librarians - and, the State Library encouraged professional growth. I accepted, despite the lack of a pay increase or change in benefits, because I felt it was a job that I would be happy coming to work to do every day. I have been at the library consultant job for nearly six months. I have had to start from scratch and leave behind many of the skills I developed specifically to work as an archivist. There are, however, skills I gained in archives that I use almost daily, including: communicating with people who may or may not know what they are searching for, creating workshops, conducting research, and listening to stories and concerns. This new position also requires that I develop skills I never thought I would need, such as mediating, learning the intricacies of Excel spreadsheet construction, long-range planning, and report evaluation. I hope I am at my current position for many years to come, but the skills I am gaining are also fully transferable to other positions in ways the job-specific skills I was gaining in archives were not. Changing careers was a difficult decision and required that I step away from my current job and evaluate the things that I wanted most out of a career. I also had to acknowledge that there were some skills I was proud to possess as an archivist that might have to slip into dormancy for a period of time as I pursued other interests. Based on my experience, I have come up with some ideas to consider when making a career leap. * Think about your current job. If you were to leave your job today, what parts of the job would you miss? What is intrinsically important about the activities you would miss? * Think about your past jobs. What activities and environments did you enjoy and might be currently missing? * In your current job, what parts would you gladly give up? Is it possible that you would be happier doing these tasks in another job under different circumstances or are these tasks you never want to do again? * Evaluate the skills you currently use. How can these skills be transferred to other positions? How might you market these skills to an audience that may not include people familiar with the work you currently do? * If earning money was not important and you could spend your days doing whatever you wanted, what would you be doing with your life at this moment? What are the key aspects of that dream world? How might those key aspects translate into job responsibilities? * If you have earned college degrees, think about why you originally decided to pursue a certain course of study. Where there elements of your degree coursework that you found interesting but did not pursue? What were those interests? * Is the job you currently have a job you planned on getting when you originally started your college coursework, or have you left your original plans behind? If you changed your career plans consider why you made those changes, and what opportunities you may have left behind. * Write a list of the top three to five things you must have in your next job in order to be happy, and be skeptical about applying for jobs that do not meet all of your required elements. Valerie Nye is a Public Library Consultant at the New Mexico State Library. She earned her MLS from the University of Wisconsin- Madison in 1997. ======== *** Advice, articles, and salary information for librarians: http://www.lisjobs.com/advice.htm ======== Charting Your Course: Taking Control of Your Professional Development by Zahra M. Baird (zjanmo@hotmail.com) Professional development opportunities are all around us. If we are lucky, or in the right place at the right time, some might even find us. But, what about those that don't? I urge you to take charge of your own professional development. If you don't make a conscious decision to scout around and familiarize yourself with the possibilities, you will find that there will miss out on many. Create opportunities for yourself by being well-informed, keeping alert, and trying out a few of the following suggestions. First things first, you must evaluate yourself, along with your current job situation. Without asking yourself tough questions and answering them honestly, you will not have a solid basis to build on when charting your course. Questions that I have found helpful to ask myself include: * What is my learning style? * Who are my mentors? * Who are my idols? * Is my current job fulfilling. If not, why not? * How do I incorporate creativity into my work? * How have I grown in my current position, and why/why not? * How do my skills and talents match currently available jobs that interest me? * What skills do I need to improve? * What can I do to distinguish myself in my area of library expertise? * What specific forms of professional training and personal development would I benefit from undertaking? * What would I attempt to do if I knew I could not fail? * What is my personal motto? * What do I feel have been my most significant professional and personal accomplishments in my career - and life? Once you have answered the above questions, you will get a better feel for where you are on your own career path. Now, it is time to start looking for possibilities, places and events that will help you to create your very own professional development plan. Start by joining as many library-related electronic discussion lists as time allows. Sample many, then stick with the ones that are most relevant. Electronic discussion lists are a great way to interact with people, network, learn, exchange best practices, discuss new issues - and also ask for help. Seek out mentors. Find someone who has the skills and qualities that you would like to develop in yourself. One tactic is to find a more experienced colleague - either in your job setting, outside your job setting but still in the field of librarianship, or people who are in other careers - and establish a relationship. Ask them out for coffee or lunch and talk with them. Don't have time for a face to face? Use e-mail. By having an open dialogue, obtaining their advice, support and guidance, culling ideas and becoming inspired by them can help bolster your professional development. Keep in mind that different people can be helpful in different situations and at different points in your career, so some mentoring relationships can last longer than others. Whenever possible, attend conferences. These can be local, regional, state or national. The different sessions offered enable you to hone your skill and knowledge base in many topic areas. Conference attendance is also a wonderful way to meet peers, develop friendships and create a network of contacts. You never know when you will need to call upon someone for a reference, consult him or her about an idea or use him or her as a sounding board. The broader your base, the better chance you will have for feedback and variety of responses. Be on the lookout for ways to build skills you are not able to build in your daily job. Association committee work as well as volunteer work in various community organizations can offer varied experience and are great venues to learn, develop and refine skills. These skills can include budgeting, program planning, project management, team work, writing for publication (articles, chapter(s) in a book or even a book itself), public speaking, running meetings and web page development - all skills which you might not have the opportunity to practice in your current work situation. Engage in post-MLS and continuing education. Taking non-credit courses, or working towards a second degree or an MBA can give you an edge as a manager and make you more marketable. With the explosion of distance education opportunities, everyone can gain knowledge and enhance skills through a variety of courses that are offered online and through the mail. Still like the classroom setting? Then explore what your local university, community college and local continuing education office has to offer. You can develop expertise in specific knowledge areas to increase your skill set and knowledge base. Don't forget your own backyard, i.e., on-the-job training. If you have that option, take whatever courses, workshops, or training sessions are being offered. Even if you think that the skill being explored will never come in handy or that you already know all there is to know on the subject, refreshers are helpful and the skills you learn transferable. Apply for scholarships, grants and awards. Many library associations, friends of the library groups, community organizations and government offices offer stipends for conference attendance, workshop attendance and/or recognition for contributions to the field of librarianship. Don't be shy, promote yourself and apply. You can't win if you don't try. Talk about books! Do this on e-mail lists or join a book club, be it online, at a library, or at a bookstore - or even create your own. It is essential to share and hear a diverse spread of opinions about what is being published. Also, write reviews of books for yourself, for professional journals, and even online book stores such as Amazon.com and Barnes & Noble. The experience of evaluating and writing about what you have read will augment your abilities to communicate. READ. Want to know more about a subject? Then find a book, a web site, or an article about the skill you are trying to master, and read all about it. You don't have to go to a credit course or workshop in order to gain knowledge. Book learning can do the trick! When on vacation, or somewhere new, stop in at the local library, the university library or any library that you can find. Take a quick peek at their resources and setup, and be sure to talk to a librarian. During the course of my career, there have been many ideas that I have picked up far afield and modified to use in my library, and they have augmented my skills and talents. Be creative in finding ways to increase your professional development opportunities. Make a commitment to do one thing to increase your professional development today, you will see the difference it makes in the long run and your action will have an impact upon your career. If you are motivated, draw up a yearly professional development plan and see how your career can soar! Zahra M. Baird is currently a Children's Librarian at the Scarsdale Public Library in Westchester County New York. She takes advantage of as many professional development opportunities she can find/create and can be reached at zjanmo@hotmail.com. ======== *** Your ad here: http://www.lisjobs.com/ratecard.htm#newsletter ======== What's Online? Recommended Resources "How a Librarian Can Live Nine Lives In a Knowledge-Based Economy," by Brunella Longo http://www.infotoday.com/cilmag/nov01/longo.htm Discusses how the author stepped out on her own to create a career as a consultant. UI Current LIS Clips: Continuing Professional Development http://www.lis.uiuc.edu/clips/2002_10.html This issue of UIUC's current awareness service provides a number of professional development resources. "Climb High: High Altitude Mountaineering Lessons for Librarians," by Georgia Briscoe http://www.aallnet.org/products/2000_19.pdf Discusses lessons learned from mountain climbing and how they apply to having a successful career in librarianship. Care and Maintenance of the Successful Career: How Experienced Law Librarians Make Their Work Rewarding http://www.aallnet.org/products/2001-27.pdf This special issue of Law Library Journal features a number of mid- career law librarians discussing how they continue to find satisfaction and challenges in their work after having reached the professional goals they originally set for themselves. Career Development http://www.neal-schuman.com/career.htm This chapter from Ward, Evans, and Rugaas' management text addresses how newer librarians develop their careers. Also see their "Women in Management" chapter: http://www.neal- schuman.com/women.htm "What's Luck Got to Do With It?" from Jennifer Cram http://www.alia.org.au/~jcram/whats_luck.html Mildly Australian-oriented; talks about how newer librarians can build a career. ======== But I Want To Hold It In My Hand! Print Resources Hauptman, Robert. Ethics and Librarianship. Jefferson, NC: McFarland, 2002. ISBN 0-7864-1306-9. $35.00. Purchase from Amazon.com: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0786413069/librarisjobsearc Although he does cite other researchers on ethical issues, this title might more aptly be called “Robert Hauptman’s opinions about ethics and librarianship.” It provides his views on and discussion of everything from Internet filtering (bad), to research misconduct (bad), to privacy protection (good). Worth reading as you form your own opinions on the ethical issues facing the profession, especially since there are few full-length works on library ethics. Consider, however, only in conjunction with the articles, books, discussions, weblogs, and other resources that comprise the ongoing professional conversation on the individual topics covered; issues are not nearly as black-and-white as presented here. (Note: The author stresses that this is not merely an updated version of his 1988 Ethical Challenges in Librarianship.) ======== Info Career Trends is copyright Lisjobs.com and Rachel Singer Gordon. Permission is granted to forward this newsletter in its entirety as long as the contents remain unchanged and this copyright message is included. For permission to reprint articles in this newsletter, contact the individual authors. If no author is listed, contact editor@lisjobs.com. If you find this newsletter useful, please consider becoming a voluntary subscriber for $10/year. 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