A week of discoveries....

I love being a librarian. I don't actually have a job as a librarian as yet, but I still love the possibilities of what could be. I love that part of what I need to do to keep relevant and up to date is keep learning! This week I discovered Audioboo , and my mind has been reeling with the potential. My twitter friend @dramagirl shared some thoughts about what she was doing with Audioboo, and I was intrigued. Above is a link to my second Audioboo, recorded using my iPhone at the Toowoomba City Library. It contains an interview with my friend and work colleague Kelly, talking about her SLQ's License 2 Test Drive online learning experience.

I would also like to use Audioboo to record interviews with some of the teens who attend our young writers group at our library. Also to record snippets of conversations with customers as to why they use our facilities/resources.  Also would be great for collecting oral histories as part of the Local History Collection. Imagine a link on a website that allows the user to hear an interview with a patron about a favourite book, or author, or service....

This week I also discovered the Columbus Metropolitan Library's 2008 Annual Report. Sounds boring? I don't think so! It is a visual representation of their report, and contains amazing interviews, news promos and conversations with staff, customers, friends of the library, board members and their executive director. What a wonderful marketing tool! Was a half an hour well spent.

I spend alot of time thinking about marketing and promoting our library, and read alot about organisational change. I discovered a quote this morning and was very taken by it. It was from a slideshare presentation on The New World of Word of Mouth . It talks about how to give customers an experience that they will want to talk about and share.

"You must decide what you stand for, and then align every one of your systems to reinforce it. You must recruit for it, you select for it, you orient for it, you train for it, you reward it, you promote for it, and you terminate those that don't have it"         John Young

Lastly, I turned 40 this week, and enjoyed a week of festivities! I also discovered a few things about myself. I am overwhelmingly grateful for the friends who share my life! Thanks to all for spoiling me so rotten. Thanks also to my many new friends who share my digital spaces. I am really loving the relationships that are being built there, and hope one day to meet IRL. I am also grateful to have such a wonderfully supportive family, who love me and encourage me to reach for the stars.  Thanks for everything.  Lastly, I discovered that I like being me, and  that being 40 is great :-))