New Librarians' Symposium - NLS6

Sketchnotes for fun & profit

Kimberley Williams — Mon, 25 Feb 2013 01:00:11 +0000

Hello library friends,

So, we’re back from NLS6, and I’ve managed to finally write this post. I could say it was the #NLS6plague that made me miss the 48 hour window of opportunity Garry Conroy-Cooper taught us about during the Librarians We Love panel, or the fact that I was busy creating a zombie horde for UTS Play Day and teaching classes for the start of session… But those would just be excuses, and one of the things that I think we all learned from NLS6 was to stop talking, and start doing.

I’ve been asked to share how I “Do Different”. I’m going to be honest – this mostly involves doing sketchnotes while I’m at conferences.

Ellen Forsyth, Garry Conroy-Cooper, Kathryn Greenhill, Kim Tairi, Mylee Joseph, Paul Brown & Sue Hutley panel

I do these for a couple of reasons. One is that when I used to type up my notes, I would never look at them again because they were boring, no matter how awesome the session was. Drawing my notes forces me to listen and makes me engage with the content more. Because there is such a limited space, I have to really listen to figure out what the key parts are, and how I’d like to represent them within one iPad screen. Ashley England, my partner in library crime helps when I’ve been distracted drawing a Delorean for 10 minutes and missed a really good point.

From Romany Manuell’s ‘I liked librarianship before it went mainstream: the rise of the hipster librarian’

Romany’s presentation was amazing. It touched on a lot of really interesting historical and contextual stuff that I just couldn’t capture in my style. Ashley said to me after that ”it was like when you were at uni, and there was a guest lecturer who came in, and just completely changed the way you thought. It could have been 20 minutes of memes, and instead it was beautifully crafted and researched”.

At UTS, our University Librarian, Mal Booth has taken up sketchnotes recently, and his style (avert your eyes, Mal!) is probably better at capturing this sort of presentation – despite working from an iPad Mini, and having less space to work with, he makes better use of space and text than I do – I tend to use visual shortcuts to jog my memory.

Ruth Kneale’s keynote

So, for example in Ruth Kneale’s keynote, the Onion Nuggets and Beerbrarian thing are to remind me that there are a lot of opportunities out there for us – we don’t have to be in traditional librarian roles, but we do have to be aware of and actively seek these new and shiny opportunities if we want to make them ours.

(Trust me, I did art in year 12. That’s totally what the McDonalds onion nuggets packet and beer represent. ~symbolic~)

From Freya Lucas’ presentation Leap & the Net will appear.

Here, for Freya’s presentation, the yellow post-it is to remind me of the story she told – during the unconference she volunteered at/attended she put forward a suggestion for a session (for those of you who haven’t been to an unconference before, you put forward suggestions for sessions on post-it notes). It wasn’t accepted.

She could have taken it as the defining, crushing moment of her library life and never ever put herself out there again, but because of how she approached it, it wasn’t a failure. As a direct result of putting her being brave was that she was later approached to publish, and so has continued along her path to libraryworld domination.

This was one of the reoccurring themes of NLS6, and it’s something I haven’t seen spoken about at length anywhere else – you’ll fail, it’ll feel awful… But later you’ll realise that this “failure” actually led to amazing opportunities, or taught you to be better, or try new things – but only if you let it.

NLS6 is easily the best conference I’ve ever been to. I know I’m not alone in thinking this. Never before have I walked away feeling such hope and excitement for our profession, and never before would I have considered putting my hand up to assist in organising a conference. But NLS7? When it happens, I’ll be there, hopefully helping to make it happen. Because when you experience something as awesome as NLS6 was, and you really believe in it, you should do everything you can to keep it going.

If you’ve looked at these and going “okay, I too can draw stick figures and write BIG COLOURFUL WORDS.” – you are right. You can. You should! Please tweet me when you do, because I love seeing them. If you’re not sure where to start, I use an iPad and the Bamboo Paper app (iTunes | Android). For styluses, I have a Studio Neat Cosmonaut and Lynktek Truglide. Complete set of sketchnotes from NLS6 and ALIA Online are on Flickr.

Sensational symposium: A reflection on NLS6

Rachel_Klesch — Thu, 21 Feb 2013 01:00:12 +0000

Wow, what a show! During the Symposium I tried to attend everything I could- if only I could defy space and time and attend everything.

I started off with the workshops. First with Show me the evidence! With Suzanne Lewis which was a great way to understand how libraries should be making decisions. I also attended the workshop Designing the future vision of librarians with Sarah Drummond and Zanna Howard- it was a laugh a minute.

The breakout sessions were so hard to choose ~ there were just so many sessions I was interested in. Some of my favourite sessions include Holger Amans session Inspiring the leap into law librarianship- sex, drugs and law reports and excellent presentations and workshops from Bonnie Heim, Freya Lucas and Erin Findlay.

The keynotes were also of particular excellence. I enjoyed Stuart Candy’s presentation on the future of the libraries looking 10,000 years into the future and Ruth Kneal‘s keynote on alternative librarian lifestyles that looked at exciting carers such as a beer or wine librarian.

One of the best things about attending the conference was meeting so many amazing people. It was great to meet new people from all different areas in the library world including people that has just started studying or looking into a library career. I’m so glad that I was able to attend the Symposium and learn how “to be different”.

Be bold with bananas: A reflection on NLS6

Emily_Beimers — Wed, 20 Feb 2013 01:00:24 +0000

Looking back over my notes from NLS6 I was overwhelmed by the sheer quantity of quality speakers I got to experience within such a short space of time. So many people presented each with so much to offer. As a student relatively new to library studies this experience was both intimidating and inspiring. I learnt so much. However, there were a few things that really stood out.

Mistakes should be turned into learning experiences. To hear this from a number of people who have been in the industry for quite some time was liberating. As a new student who is about to start job hunting within the industry, it’s nice to know that the pressure is off, I don’t have to be perfect and know the best way things should be done immediately, rather I need to strive to do the right thing and be willing to learn from any failures along the way.

Actively seek out opportunities. Opportunities won’t always fall into my lap, sometimes I’ll have to actively look for them in order to grow my skill set and challenge myself. There are so many opportunities out there and the more I become involved in them the more new opportunities will open up to me.

Network like crazy. Networking is important, super important, and as it turns out, it’s also rather fun! Networking isn’t just a way to find new job opportunities, but it opens up the possibility of learning from other peoples’ experiences. By choosing to network I’m opening myself up to a whole wealth of knowledge. People have a lot to offer and I need to seek out what they can teach me. This way, I’ll be a better librarian and a better person from it.

Everyone has their own path to follow. My own individual journey will be different from everyone else’s. I can learn from them, but I shouldn’t let anyone else’s experiences dictate how my own path pans out. Instead I should relish that I’m different and let my own individual path be a reflection of who I am as a person.

I’m sad NLS6 is over, but I’m so very glad I impulsively chose to go. I learnt so much and met so many wonderful people who encouraged me and inspired me to keep moving forward. This really was the perfect start to the year, it inspired me to go forward into the job hunt and BE BOLD (with bananas)*.

*Note: Be bold with bananas is a reference to one of the conference sessions, for further information I would suggest twitter #beboldwithbananas…you’re welcome.

Consciousness raised: Achievement unlocked ~ A reflection on NLS6

Wendy_Davis — Tue, 19 Feb 2013 01:00:36 +0000

I didn’t just do my job….I did my job right Jenica Rogers @ the final keynote of NLS6

Of all the fabulous speakers I listened to over NLS6, it is this statement by Jenica Rogers that has stayed with me in the time that has passed since the conference finished. While I am still an LIS student I also have a day job and the simplicity of this idea, of doing my job right, really struck a chord. Am I just doing my job at work and in my study? Or am I doing my work and study “right”? Upon reflection, I think there is always room for improvement. It’s a matter of being aware, of questioning the way I go about my decision making and problem solving, whether working or studying, and being honest as to whether I am doing a job I can be proud of or whether I am just going through the motions. This was definitely a consciousness raising moment for me and will continue to be so as I move forward in 2013.

There were plenty of other inspirational moments. Ellen Broad’s amazing workshop on copyright in our swiftly changing digital landscape was not just impressive because of her ability to impart gallons of relevant, thought-provoking information. It also meant I can no longer look at any image anywhere and wonder whether there is a copyright infringement happening. If that isn’t a consciousness-raising exercise then I don’t know what is. Similarly, Sue Gardner’s elegant keynote on Wikimedia and the responsibility we have as future LIS professionals to create the Wikipedia we deserve again made me reflect on how much responsibility I actually take for the circulation of information and the creation of knowledge. I returned to my day job and talked the ears off anyone who would listen about the value of Wikipedia and its underlying philosophy of social justice and access to information for all. Once again, something that hadn’t been on my radar was now front and centre. I resolved to explore the possibility of becoming a Wikipedian. Consciousness. Raised.

Apart from the speakers and their presentations there was one other aspect of NLS6 that struck me. Warmth. Now, those of you who attended will know I’m not talking about the temperature in the lecture theatres. That was icy and I was glad I took a cardigan. But the people – from the delegates, to the speakers, to the amazingly hard-working organizing committee – managed to create an atmosphere so welcoming it was almost overwhelming. Meeting and talking with people face to face, most of whom I had only interacted with online, was a privilege and a joy. And even though I’m not yet working in the LIS sector, I felt a sense of belonging that I haven’t experienced for some time. As a result I returned to my daily life resolved to work hard at my studies and to be braver in my personal and professional life. In short, at NLS6 I found the inspiration that I had been looking for to make a concerted effort to start doing things “right”.

NLS6 day two (arvo): catch up

alisa — Wed, 13 Feb 2013 00:00:37 +0000

Chess, releasing a fear of failure, endless possibilities and defining success. Our keynotes this afternoon certainly made us think…..and think real hard about our future and the future of the profession. Don’t wait for a hero. Be the hero.

Catch up or re-live the adventure that was embracing change, embracing the future and believing in ourselves to do what’s right.

NLS6 day two (morning): catch up

alisa — Tue, 12 Feb 2013 10:43:00 +0000

Setting information free and websites that stink, our keynotes on the morning of day two inspired us to take action and be different.
Catch up or re-live the moments with our Storify capture.

NLS6 Day one: Be bold with bananas!

alisa — Sun, 10 Feb 2013 20:49:15 +0000

We laughed.
We were inspired.
We are capable of leading the information profession.

One-liners like “Be bold with bananas” and “You people have mad skills” will (hopefully) empower us newbies to make the difference we want to see and make throughout our careers.

Catch up on the action from day one of the Sixth ALIA New Librarians Symposium.

Workshop day catch up

alisa — Sun, 10 Feb 2013 02:12:04 +0000

Too much to see in one day? Tried desperately to keep up with yours and the workshop next door? Following from afar?

We’ve captured the narrative – tweets and pics – from yesterday’s workshop day so you can catch up on all the action.

Survey for people passionate about the Information Profession

mel — Fri, 08 Feb 2013 00:00:48 +0000

You are invited to participate in a very brief survey aimed at collecting some anecdotal information from people who feel passionate about the information profession. It is aimed at people already working in, or at students wishing to work in, libraries or related organisations. Further, more in depth, research into this topic is likely to be conducted at a later stage.

It is anticipated that the survey will take between 5 and 10 minutes to complete. Please go to the link below to participate BEFORE FEBRUARY 13, 2013.

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/QRXRHGP

Thankyou in anticipation,

Sue Reynolds (RMIT University), Bernadette Welch (RMIT University) and Mary Carroll (CSU).

The social media lowdown for NLS6

megan — Wed, 06 Feb 2013 01:00:16 +0000

Haven’t tweeted at a professional event before? Or just in need of a re-cap? Here’s your social media guide to NLS6.

Okay, the basics first.

Twitter

Key information and updates will be shared via @alianls6. Make sure you’re following us and we’d love to hear about your experience at NLS6!

The ‘conversation’

Engage with others in the sharing of ideas and content by using the hashtags #nls6sun and #nls6mon. These hashtags will be used throughout the 6th New Librarians’ Symposium, across all social media. You can even follow along by saving a search for #nls6 in your Twitter app. If you plan on live tweeting during NLS6, we’ve found these helpful tips.

Now for the super cool bits….

Capturing the #nls6 story

The #nls6 story will be captured at the end of each day using Storify. A link to the story will be provided via Twitter and embedded into blog posts so you can catch up on all the #nls6 shenanigans. So that makes it doubly important you use the #nls6 hashtag to be part of the story. Make your mark!

Snap and share your #nls6 experience

Get together, meet new people and share your pics of your #nls6 experience. Don’t forget to tag them with #nls6 when you post them online. Each afternoon, we’ll be selecting a ‘pic of the day’.

There will be plenty of Twitter folk handy at NLS6, no shortage willing to help others out with using Twitter. Here are a selection of folks to get you started – follow them to see what they’re up to at NLS6. Kick off a conversation, say ‘hi!’

Keynote speakers

Stuart Candy @futuryst

Ryan Donahue @RyanD

Marcus Foth @sunday9pm

Sue Gardner @SuePGardner

Ruth Kneale @desertlibrarian

Ingrid Parent @ingrid_parent

Jenica Rogers @jenica26

Workshop Presenters & Panelists

Katherine Howard @K1Howard

Eleanor Whitworth @elewhitworth

Kathryn Greenhill @libsmatter