BlogJunction » Weekly Tips

Weekly Tips: Traverse the Webinar Archives

Becca — Thu, 08 May 2008 19:01:26 +0000

As anyone who has attended a webinar knows, online education is a fun and enriching experience. Do you have a specific topic you’d like to learn more about? Check out WebJunction’s webinar archives for learning opportunities in various subjects.

The Spanish Language Outreach Program has archives for the In Depth Webinar series.

Learn about Effectively Dealing with Anti-Immigrant Sentiment.
Expand your reference skills with Strategies for the Health Reference Interview with Spanish Speakers.

Services to Rural and Small Libraries include the In Focus archives at Rural Webinars.

Contribute to the evolving world of our physical spaces in libraries in Bringing People Together at the Library.
Improve relations with your Board or make a great relationship even better in Board Challenges and Successes.

The Learning Webinars will keep you abreast of the great ways to optimize ongoing learning opportunities.

In Pat Wagner’s Webinar on Library Leadership and LE@D, she touts the benefits of training all library staff in leadership skills.

Create an educational environment for both employees and patrons at your library in 10 Ways to Make Your Library Great in 2008.

Last Week’s Poll Results: Podcasting

Past Tips:

Banish Burnout
Join the Conversation
View all out past tips here.

Weekly Tips: Podcasting

Becca — Wed, 30 Apr 2008 23:22:28 +0000

Providing audio content on your library’s website improves the user experience and enriches patron services. WebJunction’s Pathfinder on Creating Audio and Podcasts for Your Library will navigate you to different resources on podcasting, including this quick guide. To acquaint yourself with the finer points of working with sound files, check out this article.

Discover the unique needs of creating podcasts for academic libraries in Learning to Speak: Creating a Library Podcast With a Unique Voice.

Check out examples of what other libraries are doing with podcasts at the Library Success Wiki Podcasting page.

Last Week’s Poll Results: Banish Burnout

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Weekly Tips: Banish Burnout

Becca — Wed, 23 Apr 2008 18:29:41 +0000

Library professionals are no strangers to burnout. Indeed, the high demands of our work are sure to take a toll sooner or later. If you’re feeling the effects of burnout, it’s time to prioritize your well-being and recharge your batteries.

Running on Empty: Dealing with Burnout in the Library Setting – This article from LIScareer.com is a must-read for preventing, identifying, and coping with burnout.
Return to the roots of your passion in the Why do you love libraries? discussion.
This month’s I’m Curious, George provides sound advice on how to Beat the Winter Blues.
Improving Co-Worker Relationships – If workplace politics are getting you down, picking up tools for interpersonal interactions from this course can help.
Feeling the tension? Check out a course on Stress Management. People who are paragons of peace seem impervious to stress, but really they just manage it well!

Even when you love what you do, burnout can occasionally trickle in. Remember, it’s a good feeling when you can look forward to going to work. Be kind to yourself: take time to refocus your priorities, prevent exhaustion, and banish burnout!

Last Week’s Poll Results: Join the Conversation

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Weekly Tips: Join the Conversation

Becca — Thu, 17 Apr 2008 04:12:28 +0000

An online discussion forum is a great medium for holding conversations amongst busy, geographically dispersed people. At WebJunction, the Discussion Boards are the place where your fellow library professionals deliberate all matters concerning our work, from technology to patron services. Since we all face similar problems, the next step is to share solutions! Some interesting topics to explore:

Test your patron services programming ideas or get inspired in The Idea Exchange.
Seeking employment in the library field comes with unique challenges. If you’re happily settled, share any tips and tricks to landing a fulfilling position in Job Searching.
Disaster doesn’t just happen to facilities. Check out the various Networking & Security threads for managing and protecting your library’s networks.
Some forum questions become the Question of the Week.

Participating in a conversation with like-minded souls is heartening, and even if they’re not like-minded, thrashing out differences is an elevating learning experience. Think about taking the next step and join the conversation today!

Last Week’s Poll Results: Online Communities of Practice

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Weekly Tips: Online Communities of Practice

Becca — Wed, 09 Apr 2008 06:29:19 +0000

According to this definition, a community of practice is “[An] informal, self-organized, network of peers with diverse skills and experience in an area of practice or profession”. Virtual communities of practice stem from emerging internet technologies, and their influence on knowledge management and innovation is well known. In the collaboration that occurs across community sharing, new knowledge is created, which can evolve a profession into exciting new territory. Has your engagement in your favorite communities been dwindling? Check out some resources to recharge your batteries:

Recent Research on Virtual Communities. Read this comprehensive article that covers everything from forum behaviors (have you ever “flamed” a discussion board?) to building successful virtual community spaces.
In Everything I Need to Know I Learned Online, WebJunction’s own Chrystie Hill advocates the leverage of online communities amongst librarians in order to enrich our work and improve patron services.
Library websites aren’t just for the catalog. Read about Michael Habib’s focus on creating community within library websites in this feature from the Member Spotlight Archives.
Use the Community of Practice discussion space in All Aboard for discussing your experiences with developing, contributing, and learning from communities of practice.

Last Week’s Poll Results: The Open Source Alternative

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