Catherine Hakala-ausperk

I have to admit that I was really skeptical when I picked this up at the library. Underemployment plus a general air of negativity in my organization of four years had really worn me down, but I saw this in a recent catalog and decided to give it a try.

Although published by the ALA and written by a librarian, this is not written exclusively for library employees. It does identify the fact that many people working in libraries may have fallen into their field of work, or took on their current jobs even though it is not their end-goal, and now feel somewhat pigeonholed or stuck in their silo. It basically walks you through a SWOT analysis of yourself, professionally and personally, and helps you think about how that plays into your current job and future career plans.

The concept seems kind of feel-good self-care cheesy, but so many of us just end up plodding along in our low-paying jobs, and it really is useful to go through some guided self-reflection and become more conscious of your career path.

However; wait for book to go on sale or get it from your library. $50 is a ridiculous price for this.… (meer)

At a mere 129 pages, lots of white space, and a list price of approximately $50.00 in paperback, Renew Yourself by Catherine Hakala-Ausperk made me laugh when I first saw it. How can such a slight, expensive book possibly be worthwhile? Despite my reservations, I was pleasantly surprised. Ms. Hakala-Ausperk offers an upbeat, positive approach to changing one's life and career, whether one is in a position to leave one's current job or not. This book is a workbook with lots of places to fill in the blanks. In fact, now that I'm done reading it, I will probably read it again and actually fill in those blanks. Highly recommended for anyone (not just librarians) who is dissatisfied with his or her situation and is looking to make a change, but doesn't know how or where to begin.… (meer)

A very thought-provoking workbook for building leadership skills, whether you're a library director or department head. Twelve different topics (one for each month) are covered: Attitude, Success with stakeholders, Staffing, Communication, Customer service, Planning, Friends and allies, Training, Funding, People, Leadership, and Your future. Each topic is divided into four short "chapters" (one for each week) discussing a different aspect of the topic. A worksheet concludes each chapter to help you reflect on your own experiences and apply the information to your own career.

This book has really made me think about aspects of leadership I haven't paid a lot of attention to (like how to handle our mistakes after acting on poor judgement), and has inspired me to do some research in areas I've never thought I'd be interested in (like the different budget formats commonly used in libraries). This would be a great reference to have on hand; I may have to purchase a copy for my own personal library...… (meer)