Mollie Pherson, Regional Librarian

I always have so much fun at these conferences because I get to visit with library friends throughout the state that I don't get to see on a regular basis AND I get to learn new and exciting things about what's going on in libraries! 

My day started with the keynote speaker luncheon that featured Tim Spalding, founder of LibraryThing.  I've been a LibraryThing user for a little over two years now and to listen to Tim speak was really great!  To think I can actually compare my personal collection and Thomas Jefferson's personal collection is incredible!

After lunch, I headed to the silent auction.  Currently, I'm in a bidding war for a super cool Minnesota Wild Hockey Pack!  I hope I win it. 

The first conference session I attended this afternoon was Managing Negativity at Work.  Lauren Burnett, facilitator for and President of the Center for Inner Quality, presented information about how to deal with negative situations in one's life and how to prevent negative situations from occurring.  Lauren shared the top 11 causes of negativity in the workplace, saying that if we are all aware of these things, we can possibly prevent a negative situation from occurring:

1.  Hurt feelings, seldom given support or positive feedback
2.  What you want to do is in conflict with what you feel you should do
3.  Not feeling as good about yourself as you'd like
4.  Being taken advantage of
5.  Hurt feelings, being rejected by others
6.  Work criticized by others
7.  Being isolated from people
8.  Fear of change
9.  Taking action too slowly
10.  Being forced to lower job standards
11.  Negativity has become a habitual pattern

Here are some other interesting ideas she presented:

• You have six seconds to hi-jack any negative objects before they affect you.
• The person who is perceived as the calmest is the person who is perceived as the most confident.
• To calm your own personal negative feelings, think of 3 things that are bugging you, then 2, and then 1.  Then, switch the focus to something positive by thinking of 1 positive thing, then 2, then 3.
• Exhale to relax your body when in a stressful situation.

She also talked a little about work gossip and how that can totally affect a working environment.  She basically said if you have listened to gossip, you have engaged in it (even if you didn't say anything).  If you find yourself in an uncomfortable situation, just say straight out, "I'm uncomfortable talking about this" or switch to another common positive topic--avoid becoming "one of them."  Lauren said that the supervisor role is key because that person needs to be able to identify the gossipers when things get out of hand and needs to set the standards as to what is acceptable in the workplace.  Gossip grows because communication is lacking, so always keep communication between workers flowing.  Overall, it was a very interesting presentation!

The second conference session I attended was with Rebecca Patton from the Arrowhead Library System that focused on the Minnesota Library Certification Program.  The Minnesota Certification Program is for library staff and is intended to improve the library services in Minnesota and it encourages library staff members to further develop library skills.  Although it was a small group (only three people), the session was really informal and informative.  Rebecca shared a little bit about the Minnesota Certification program and then guests asked questions about the program.  Because I'm on the Certification Steering Committee and I will be a homework reader in the SELCO region, I wanted to know everything I can about the MN Certification program.  FYI--If you are interested in participating in the MN Certification and you are in the SELCO region, please contact me and I can help answer any questions you may have about the program. 

My last stop this evening will be the 23 Things Party on a Stick between 7:30-8:30 p.m. to do some social networking and grab some Ice Cream on a Stick.  Woo hoo!