Back in the Saddle

Everybody occasionally needs time to step back and  smell the roses. To enjoy the moment, reaffirm what’s important in life, and work towards it, or else you will find it’s too late. Renewal is an important factor in life. There are many paths to take. Many may seem easy on the surface but fail to deliver in the long run. Often the harder path will see you wanting to turn back. However, stick it out and the rewards will be worth it. Well that’s enough from the enlightened guru.

The same principle applies to libraries. Don’t get too caught up in processes and policies which are past their use by date. Jump clear of the cogs and visualize the organisation for what it is. Directed and motivated by people, not people being a slave to the organisation. Be part of the machine, not of the machine.

Ask everybody how procedures can be improved. Take all suggestions on board and treat each with the respect it deserves. To quote the Desiderata, “Speak your truth quietly and clearly, and listen to others,
even the dull and ignorant; they too have their story.” Well maybe not as brutal as that, but you get my drift.

There will be the doubters, those driven by the machine. Those unable to see the forest for the trees. Those protecting power bases, vested interests, and comfort zones. Hopefully those types are falling by the wayside as they are being swept along by the torrent of change. As the saying goes, it’s not rocket science, just plain common sense.