Cites mentioned in this podcast are here (in PDF format).

Here are cites Michael mentions in this podcast (in PDF format).

Early on we realized that in order to convince librarians to move forward we had to demonstrate a clear connection between our recommendations and established library principles, values, and beliefs. We also recognized that those principles, values, and beliefs are powerful motivators when they are personalized, because everyone has a slightly different take on what matters most about libraries and librarianship.

We found it so useful in our own collaboration to share our professional philosophies with each other that we decided to publish a “This We Believe” statement, in hopes that it might stimulate your thinking as well.

They encourage you to write – and share – your own.

Mentioned in this podcast: EPIC 2014 and the origins of the word “truthiness.”

Appropriately, you can follow the AP Stylebook on Twitter.

Here is a list of cites mentioned in this podcast (in PDF format).

“We’ll be looking at what kinds of sources you should be scanning for clues to the future and why; what kinds of triggers you should be looking for; and how you ask the right questions about the future,” she said during a conversation earlier this week. “The key here is that the more tools that you have for thinking about the future, the more proactive you can be about creating the future. This workshop is an opportunity to learn and practice some future-thinking tools and then spend some time thinking about the future so you can find opportunities.”

Included in the curriculum are explorations of scenario planning, a concept explored by futurist in his book The Art of the Long View: Planning for the Future in an Uncertain World; environmental scanning; and top trends which library leaders need to watch.

“We need to look outside of libraries for the forces and trends that are changing people’s expectations about information, technology, and community,” Aldrich says. “If we’re asking the right questions about our future, we can keep developing services that meet the needs of the people we serve.”

Among the sources she cites are the TED (Technology, Entertainment, and Design) conferences with talks which are archived at Ted.com; the Pop!Tech conferences with similarly archived materials at Pop!Tech.org; and trendwatching.com, which offers a variety of resources including free monthly “trend briefings.”

Using these tools will help library leaders engage in more effective environmental scanning and scenario thinking. Environmental scanning, she suggests, is “taking an interest in observing the world around you…reading and observing things you may never do,” and scenario building, “in its simplest terms, is creating stories about the future to help your library think about possible futures, and then build strategies that will help you thrive in each of them, and to help your library create its preferred future.”

The workshop is the latest offering in Infopeople’s multi-stage Eureka! Leadership Program with its “Building Leadership Skills” series, and it will remain available as a contract workshop through Infopeople for those who are not able to attend the currently scheduled sessions. Registration ($75 per person) for “Building Leadership Skills: Planning for the Future” and other “Building Leadership Skills” sessions is continuing on the Infopeople website; instructors for other sessions in the series include Marie Radford and Steve Albrecht.

Sessions of “Building Leadership Skills: Planning for the Future” are currently scheduled for Buena Park Library District (6/4/2009); San Diego County Library Headquarters (6/5/2009); San Francisco Public Library – Latino/Hispanic Community Meeting Room (6/11/2009); Belle Cooledge Library in Sacramento (6/12/2009); Fresno – Woodward Park (6/16/2009); and San Jose Martin Luther King, Jr. Library (6/23/2009).

Here is a list of cites mentioned in the podcast (in PDF format).

The first podcast addressed the question, “Will it show?” The second podcast asked, “Can it grow?” This third podcast addresses the question, “Does it flow?”

Questions asked in this podcast:
• Is it equitable (not necessarily identical) across our entire service area?
• Is it conveniently accessible to community members?
• Can most members of the community use it without specialized instruction or extensive assistance?
• Is it compatible with tools – especially non-library tools – the community already uses?
• Is the format based on community demand rather than library tradition?
• Does it value “yes” over “no”?

Here is the checklist they’ve been using in this series.