The 80/20 Librarian: Focusing on the 20% that matters

In keeping with my philosophy of letting a book speak for itself instead of writing a formal book review, here are the most meaningful quotes I found from the Icarus Deception by Seth Godin.

“It’s far more dangerous to fly too low than too high… By flying too low we shortchange not only ourselves but also those who depend on us or might benefit from our work. We’re so obsessed about the risk of shining brightly that we’ve traded in everything that matters to avoid it. The path that’s available to us is to be human, to do art, and to fly far higher than we’ve been taught is possible.” (Page 2)

“Art is the unique work of a human being, work that touches another. Seizing new ground, making connections between people or ideas, working without a map-these are works of art, and if you do them, you are an artist, regardless of whether you wear a smock, use a computer, or work with others all day long. Speaking up when there is no obvious right answer, making yourself vulnerable when it’s possible to put up shields, and caring about both the process and the outcome-these are works of art that our society embraces and the economy demands.” (Page 6)

“There isn’t a pain free way to achieve your goals” (Page 7)

“I’ve witnessed countless opportunities squandered by people who could have taken action but didn’t. Not because they couldn’t figure out what to do but because they weren’t willing to do it.” (Page 7)

“The connection economy rewards the leader, the initiator, and the rebel “(Page13).

“Sometimes, courage is the willingness to speak the truth about what you see and to own what you say. In order for there to be courage, there must be risk.” (Page 17)

“Our success turns not on being the low-price leader but on being the high trust leader.” (Page 25)

“Don’t worry about your stuff. Worry about making meaning instead.” (Page 25)

“College started as universitas magistrorum et scholarium- a community of masters and scholars. It was a refuge; it was a place you went to get lost in ideas, to discover and wander, and to plot a course as an academic.” (Page 32)

“This economy demands that we spin the log ever faster-doing not the work of making the same widget faster and cheaper in a race to the bottom but the work of connecting and entertaining and amazing with our most vivid dreams.” (Page 34)

“Art has no right answer. The best we can hope for is an interesting answer.” (Page 36)

“There are so many places that art and connection are needed, so many avenues that are open, so many opportunities, that no one is boxed out. It’s not about whether we have what it takes; it’s about whether we choose to pursue it.” (Page 37)

“It’s impossible to connect with a device or an automaton. It’s worthwhile to connect with a person, to someone we have granted the dignity that she deserves.” (Page 56)

“Art is personal. Art is untested. Art is intended to connect.” (Page 64).

“Who decides if your work is good? When you are at your best, you do. If the work doesn’t deliver on its purpose, if the pot you made leaks or the hammer you forged breaks, then you should learn to make a better one.” (Page 71)

“The artist wonders, “Where is there an opportunity for me to change everything and make an impact?” (Page 85).”

“Cassidy Dale points out that many people are either knights or gardeners. The knights view the world as a cataclysmic conflict with winners and losers, with battles to be fought, and with right and wrong as the dominant drivers. Gardeners, on the other hand, have the instinct to look for ways to heal, to connect, and to grow the people they encounter. (Page 86)”

“When the critic pushes you to make better art, art that you are capable of, then her response is worth cherishing. But the critic who pushes you to fit in or dumb down your work-take that criticism with caution.” (Page 94)

“Art is a commitment to a process and to a direction and to generosity, not to a result.” (Page 95)

“Foolish risks are for the gods. That’s what we write myths about. Not their everyday, banal lives. No, we write about and talk about and dream about their brave exploits and their foolish risks. The gods are us. And yes, the gods are crazy.” (Page 102)

“The value of art is in your willingness to stare down the risk and to embrace the void of possible failure.” (Page 105)

“We talk about “sink or swim”, but there’s not as much sinking going on as you might expect. There’s a fair amount of treading water, a whole lot of people unwilling to get into the pool at all, but not so much sinking. We’ve greatly exaggerated the risk of sinking, without celebrating the value of swimming.” (Page 106)

“Art has no safety map, no easy-to-follow manual, no guaranteed method.” (Page 106)

“Your goal as an artist is to make art that moves the audience of your choice.” (Page 128)

“When those who love you speak of a life well lived, we’ll talk about the lines you managed to color outside of, the people you touched, and the ruckus you made. Most of all, we’ll remember how you took a chance and connected with us.” (Page 129)

“The reason we don’t get talker’s block is that we’re in the habit of talking without a lot of concern for whether or not our inane blather will come back to haunt us. Talk is cheap. Talk is ephemeral. Talk can be easily denied. We talk poorly and then eventually (or sometimes), we talk smart. We get better at talking precisely because we talk. We see what works and what doesn’t and, if we’re insightful, do more of what works. How can one get talker’s block after all this practice? Writer’s block isn’t hard to cure. Just write. Write poorly. Continue to write poorly, in public, until you can write better. Everyone should learn to write in public. Get a blog. Do it every day. Every single day. Not a dairy, not fiction, but analysis. Clear, crisp, honest writing about what you see in the world. Or want to see. Or teach (in writing). Tell us how to do something.” (Page 166)

“Your biggest failure is the thing you dreamed of contributing but didn’t find the guts to do.” (Page 216)

Rex Huppke, of the Chicago Tribune, came out with an article highlighting the growing interest the Millennial generation has in leadership opportunities. One challenge that this generation faces is how to communicate. Effective communication is a key characteristic of valuable leadership.

Here are some important facts from the article:

• A Pew Research Center analysis of U.S. Census Bureau data now shows that 1 in 3 current U.S. workers are Millennials (adults in the age range of 18 to 34)
• The Millennials are now the largest segment of the US workforce
• WorkplaceTrends.com, a research group, and Virtuali, a leadership training firm, conducted the “Millennial Leadership Study.”
• What were some of the key results of the Millennial Leadership Study?
  1. 91% of Millennials aspire to be leaders
  2. 43% of those wanting to be leaders cited “empowering others to succeed” as their primary motivation for entering leadership
  3. 5% of those wanting to be leaders cited money as their primary motivation
  4. 1% of those wanting to be leaders cited power as their primary motivation
  5. 58% believe that communication is the most important leadership skill
  6. 51% believe that communication is one of their strongest skills
• What is the concern?
  1. Millennial communication is overly reliant on electronic communication (i.e. text messaging, Face Time, Skype, etc.). Check out the excellent quote by Dan Schwabel in Huppke’s article. Many of the Millennials grew up as digital natives so electronic communication became second nature for them.
  2. Millenials, however, do believe that in-person meetings, phone calls, and “soft skills” are the most important skills for leadership.
  3. Millennials believe that their strongest communication skills are in-person, telephone, and other “soft skills”.
  4. While work communication is increasingly technologically focused, “we’re a long way from personal interaction being irrelevant.”
  5. Millennials face a learning curve with regards to learning to effectively communicate in the non-electronic environment.
  6. The great news is that Millennials want to learn to be better communicators.
• What are some possible ways Millennials can learn to be better communicators? Sean Graber of Virtuali noted the following:
  1. Workplace training opportunities (i.e. workshops) and workplace experiences (transfer to another part of the organization to get another perspective, an international posting can do this effectively)
  2. Providing Millennials with mentors
  3. Millennials need to be open to feedback
  4. Millennials need to develop time for self reflection and cultivating emotional intelligence
• What can workplace veterans do to help Millennials with their communication? Huppke notes the following:
  1. Teach them
  2. Give them experiences they can build on
  3. Encourage them to turn away from electronic devices and look inward
• Huppke’s final words are worth repeating: “The Millennials want to do good, and companies would be foolish not to harness that desire. If they want to lead, let them lead. Just show them how to do it right.”

Entrepreneur Magazine’s Ann Handley did a great job analyzing this past spring’s Pew Research Center report on teen social media use and in particular the role of Facebook (the platform that over 70% of teens use).

She notes that in order for organizations to better promote their value to teens, they should do the following:

1) Publish better Facebook content not necessarily more of it

2) Use visual aids and photography effectively

3) Reach out to smaller size audiences which are those “you care most about.”

4) Get active on Facebook groups and private groups.

In particular she discusses some key developments in how adults and teens use Facebook.

I am enclosing a table that notes the trends.

(Photos from Wikipedia)

One of the big stories that librarians will recall from May is the partnership between the Andreessens (Marc Andreessen and his wife Laura Arrillaga-Andreessen) with Hewlett Packard to donate roughly $170,000 worth of computers, printers and other equipment to public libraries in Ferguson and Baltimore. USA Today’s Jessica Guynn wrote a great article on this which is worth revisiting.

There were really 4 key points to the story for me:

1) Key philanthropists and influential members of the business community do care about libraries. This may be on account of positive experiences based on previous library use and or observing what libraries currently are doing to be of service in the community. To quote from Guynn’s article, “Arrillaga-Andreessen says her local library nurtured a lifelong relationship with reading and books. “Libraries were a safe haven and provided access to another world as we were growing up,” she said.”

2) Philanthropists and those in the business community care enough about libraries to want to make a meaningful contribution. In this instance the contribution is a six figure donation of computers, printers, and other technical equipment.

3) Positive connections made between the library and the philanthropist increase the likelihood of effective philanthropic engagement. Equally important positive press about libraries and the great work they do will increase the likelihood of  philanthropic engagement. In this instance the Andreessens were “moved” by the work of librarians in Ferguson and Baltimore.

4) The question now is, how are libraries planning to keep engaging with philanthropists and the business community? Brainstorming how to continue to spread the news about the great work that libraries do should be something every librarian will want to think about.

While I was disappointed that I could not attend the 2015 American Library Association annual conference in San Francisco, I was delighted that Barbara Alvarez was willing to report back on what she learned. Thanks to Barbara for being my first guest columnist!

The Librarianship Way of Life: Highlights from ALA 2015

To an outsider, an annual library conference probably sounds dull or uninspiring. To those in the library field, we know that conferences provide us with the perfect time to rejuvenate ourselves, our libraries, and our careers. As the 2015 BRASS Morningstar Public Librarian Support Award winner, I was honored to receive the financial support to attend the annual conference in San Francisco. Throughout the various innovative workshops, inspirational colleagues that I met at various networking event, and exciting products/practices that I learned about, the following moments resonated the most with me:

Gloria Steinem, Keynote Address: As a history major who took many Women and Gender Studies courses in college, I have always admired Gloria Steinem’s activism and ability to mobilize others in an effort for gender and sexual equality. As a result, I was really excited to hear her speak about the impact that libraries and information access has had on her philosophy of equality. Gloria spoke about how libraries and librarians opened her eyes to new ideas and practices, but also emphasized that librarians democratize information and knowledge. I was fortunate enough to have the opportunity to ask her about her trip to North Korea in May, as part of Women Cross DMZ. In this effort, Gloria and other women’s right activists were able to cross the border into North Korea and speak with women about their rights and experiences in one of the world’s most secluded countries. A controversial endeavor, Gloria reiterated that it was worthwhile because it demonstrated how women throughout the world stand together in solidarity despite their national circumstances. Furthermore, she noted how they were forbidden to bring books, computers, or access the Internet when entering North Korea. As a result, Steinem’s experiences and discussion showed librarians that the work that we do is important because our democratization of information helps keep an informed and educated public, and in turn active citizens.

Building Blocks: Constructing Your Career Path through Networking, Branding, and Flexibility:  As a 2011 Spectrum Scholar, I collaborated with four other Spectrum Scholars to present about our experiences in graduate school and in the library field and what we recommended to current Spectrum Scholars and recent graduates. Each of us on the panel had different expertise and backgrounds, but we all agreed on the fact that you do not know where your career path will lead you. Sometimes we have a vision for ourselves and our career, but depending on evolving economies, job industries, roles, communities, and opportunities those expectations can shift. Therefore, it is so important to remain flexible and open to change in your current position or future job roles. Additionally, it is essential to form connections and maintain contact with people that you meet at conferences, on committees, and in different positions because you never know how those relationships will impact your career and future. Lastly, developing yourself as an expert in a particular area will help you leverage your contacts and develop a reputation as someone who is dependable, innovative, and throughout the nation. The key message of networking, branding, and flexibility, as well as our own personal experiences in graduate school and in the professional field can be viewed here.

#Lovewins: While in San Francisco, the Supreme Court ruling that gay marriage will be legally recognized throughout the United States was announced. This paralleled with San Francisco’s Pride Parade on Sunday, June 28^th which made it even more a celebration. Additionally, the conference opening auditorium speaker on Friday, June 26^th was Roberta Kaplan, litigator in the defeat of Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA). Roberta talked about her experience not only as an attorney who successfully fought for her client, Edie Windsor, a woman who was unable to inherit her partner’s estate despite being in an relationship that spanned over 40 years, but also discussed her own experience coming out to her friends and family. This was an emotional talk, especially in light of the Supreme Court ruling. Two days later, the Pride Parade brought many librarians outside the conference hall and into the street to celebrate equality and love for all.

As librarians, we contribute to equality, democracy, and innovation. The ways that we do this can vary: through the networks that we develop and maintain, through our changing responsibilities within the library and within our communities, by introducing and instructing residents about new technologies and resources available to them, and in creating equal opportunity access for every person that comes to us regardless of income, sexual orientation, race, ethnicity, religion, or political beliefs. My experience at ALA 2015 showed me that the role of a librarianship is not restricted to a library, job title, or organization. Rather, librarianship is a philosophy and way of life; a commitment to equality in our communities, for citizens, and to one another.

These were the best/most inspirational quotes that had the most impact on me after reading Make Change Work For You by Scott Steinberg.

Page 5, Innovation is simply, “The introduction of something new.”

Page 57, “Courage, the researchers say, is the quality that allows someone to pursue valuable goals despite risks.”

Page 96, “Never be without a plan, and never rely on it.”

Page 110, “The more you confront barriers others shy away from, the greater your odds of success. The more you push past them, the greater the rewards you’ll reap that lie beyond because they’ll be more uncommon and hold more value as a result.”

Page 111, “When you encounter failure, don’t get discouraged and don’t resign yourself to ongoing disappointment. Before there was Ford’s wildly successful Model T automobile, there were models A, N, S, and so on.”

Page 120, “Thinking outside the box is for suckers; the only boxes present are the ones you choose to put in place. All it takes to remove them is preparation, persistence, and a solid plan of attack, not to mention a healthy tolerance for taking the pain that goes along with executing it. If you should happen to encounter a legitimate barrier to success, don’t be afraid to take a deep breath, then break out a sledgehammer and start knocking down walls.”

Page 153- “The future belongs to B+ students. Tomorrow, victory doesn’t go to pedagogues or perfectionists. It goes to those who apply just enough effort to meet premium standards (a principle that economists refer to as satisficing) and devote time that would otherwise be applied toward diminishing returns (what’s the practical, real world difference between scoring an A- and a B+ again?) to more productive uses.”

Page 155-“ You don’t need an MBA. You don’t need a PhD. You need a GSD (get stuff done) degree, and all it takes to earn is a willingness to change and innovate, allowing you to readily adapt to and deal with whatever stumbling blocks life throws your way.”

Page 163, “Luck is hard work”

Page 166, “Today it is safer to take risks than it is to risk playing it safe.”

Page 172, “The single most important investment you will ever make isn’t in a stock or mutual fund-it’s in yourself.”

Page 173, “Create opportunity, don’t wait for it to come to you.”

Page 173-174, “Today’s most effective leaders are eternal students, constantly seeking to expand their knowledge base, skill sets, and support networks.”

Page 174, “Seek out tasks and problems that others avoid.”

Page 179, “Risk takers are a valuable commodity in any modern organization; they’re the men and women who aren’t afraid to question the status quo.”

Page 189, “Innovation isn’t about being more talented or high-tech, it’s about being more resourceful and creative.”

Page 192, “Failure can be seen as an investment of sorts: a fundamental process through which people and organizations learn and make more informed decisions.”

Page 241, John Holt is quoted as saying, “True leaders, in short, do not make people into followers, but into other leaders.”

Lambeth Hochwald had a great article in Entrepreneur Magazine on Jan Perry, the general manager of the Economic and Workforce Development Department for Los Angeles. Perry’s main focus has been on helping military veterans and the homeless find jobs. No doubt a lot of librarians can relate to this.

What was Perry’s take on entrepreneurs?

“Entrepreneurs are a unique breed of people who can translate their visions into reality, and government can be a catalyst for them.”

How are libraries acting as catalysts for entrepreneurs? I would love to learn what you think.

I recently learned about a company that has been called the “Netflix for Legos.” I’m talking about Pley.

The company has gotten great reviews from publications such as the Wall Street Journal, Fast Company, Washington Post, and many more.

What are some of the benefits to renting Legos? These include having kids spend less time with a digital screen, cost savings, reducing clutter, saving space (a big one for libraries), and protecting the environment. The Pley website states that “every set that is rented saves a tree over its rental life cycle.”

I wonder if children and youth services librarians are taking note of this company or using their services? They may also find the Pley blog as a starting point to brain storm programming ideas.

Three Questions Guy Kawasaki’s Asks When Hiring as featured in Art of the Start 2.0

1) Can the candidate do what you need?

2) Does the candidate believe in what you’re doing?

3) Is the candidate likeable and trustworthy?

As a subset to question 3, Kawasaki applies the Shopping Mall Test. If Kawasaki were to hypothetically see a candidate in a shopping mall before the candidate were to see Kawasaki, Kawasaki would hire the candidate if he felt enthusiastic about going up to the candidate and saying hello. Alternatively, if he were not to be enthusiastic about walking up to the candidate in the shopping mall then Kawasaki would be likely to refrain from hiring the candidate.

Need to deliver an effective “pitch” presentation? Let Guy Kawasaki’s Art of the Start 2.0 be your guide. This is a summation of Chapter 6: The Art of Pitching.

Set expectations beforehand with the audience:

1) Ask the audience how much of their time can they give you.  As Kawasaki says, “This question shows that you respect the value of the audience’s time by not running over your limit. It also makes the audience commit to a minimum allotment of time.”

2) Then ask, “What are the three most important pieces of information that I can provide?” This allows you to focus on information that is important to the audience by skipping the irrelevant and focusing more time on what the audience finds relevant.

3) Finally ask if the audience will be patient enough to ask questions at the end. Get the audience to allow you to present without breaking your rhythm.

Cut to the chase by minute number six. In minute number 6 use a three to five word description to explain what you do. This could be something like, “We sell software” or “We teach underprivileged kids.”

Obey the 10/20/30 rule!

What is this?

10 slides for 20 minutes with a bare minimum of 30 point text!

How to do this with your slides? For a start-up company/project trying to get investments/support see the sample schema below.

Slide number 1 is all about the organization’s name and its contact information.

Slide number 2 identifies the problem that your company/project will address.

Slide number 3 focuses on how your company/project addresses the problem with a solution.

Slide number 4 discusses the technical details as to how you provide your solution. If you have something tangible such as a working demo or prototype, showcase it! Glen Shires of Google noted, “If a picture is worth a thousand words, a prototype is worth ten thousand slides.” When in doubt, focus on building your prototype and then when that is complete hit the presentation circuit. A good presentation that involves a prototype never gets to the end of the slide show, because everyone in the audience wants to learn more about the prototype.

Slide number 5 touches on the business model (i.e. how you make money).

Slide number 6 is the marketing strategy (i.e. how you plan to let people know about your company/project).

Slide number 7 is the competitive analysis. The wrong answer is that there is no competition! Be as thorough as possible with this slide.

Slide number 8 is the management team slide. You need to show that the team’s “education and work experience are relevant to the market you are going after.”

Slide 9 concerns the financial projections and metrics. Here you need to estimate what will happen in the next 3 to 5 years with the number of customers, sales, etc,

Slide 10 wraps up with “the current status of your product, what the near future looks like, and how you’ll use the money you’re trying to raise.”

Just let one person, the CEO, talk. One or two other team members with specialty knowledge can briefly talk to the audience on a topic related to their expertise, but the CEO should be covering the vast majority of the presentation.

To sum it up, “Simply provide enough detail to prove you can deliver and enough aerial view to prove you have a plan.”

Treat everyone in the audience as someone who has the power make your idea/product take off. “Work with anyone who is a key influencer, from secretaries, administrative aides, and personal assistants to product managers, support managers, and database administrators.”

Other tips? Don’t read your slides, “animate your body, not your slides“, use bullets, use diagrams and graphs, and “make printable slides.”

Also, as a general rule if you are invited to speak about a subject that you are not familiar with, just decline the invitation. Don’t publicize your ignorance and don’t waste people’s time.

Also, consider this passage Kawasaki lists on page 245, “The higher you go in many big companies, the thinner the oxygen; and the thinner the oxygen, the more difficult it is to support intelligent life. Thus, the middles and bottoms of organizations contain most of the intelligence, and intelligence is necessary to appreciate innovative products. The concept that people without lofty titles can affect sales means that you should ignore titles and work with anyone who is a key influencer, from secretaries, administrative aides, and personal assistants to product managers, support managers, and database administrators.”