I’ve been thinking a lot lately about what skill set I bring to the table that might set me apart from other graduating MLIS students. It’s not that I’m trying to beat anyone, I just want to have a better idea about who I am, what I’m doing, and what I should be aiming to do.
And largely, the skill set I bring, is seemingly technical. I can use technologies and get a feel for if there is a use for them in a given setting. I, typically, can get a feel for if the technology is one that will stick or not. I can learn new technologies pretty quickly, and can pick up technical skills when I need to. And looking at that list, I realize that it’s not that I’m a techy person in the traditional library sense. What I bring isn’t a knowledge of coding, hardware, and networking. I don’t know bring a background in the suite of programs that people have access to at my institution. And I certainly am not a trouble shooter for anything beyond basic problems. What I do bring, though, is a knowledge of computer culture.
I think that I have a knack for picking up technologies that people use in their daily life. Of course, not everyone uses all of the technologies I use, but I have a good idea about what people are turning to their computers for, and what websites and programs they’re using to meet their everyday needs. Sometimes I can figure out where we’re going really early. Sometimes it takes me a little bit longer. This isn’t a skill I think I’ll have forever, but for whatever reason, it’s one I have now.
What’s interesting to me is that this isn’t a library skill. It’s a marketplace skill. Knowing what folks are using, knowing how to use it the way they do, applying the technology to a work environment, and training others to do the same will be increasingly important in every setting. Mine just happens to be libraries.
And for me, that makes this even more interesting. We, in libraries, are really interested in how people find information. At least I hope we are, because we have to know what they’re already doing if we want to help educate students to use our resources. The intersection of computer culture and information seeking behavior is a good fit for me, and, as you can tell in the new subtitle of the blog, one that I’ll be focusing on here for now.
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