Nuggets from the CLA conference

I attended the Connecticut Library Association conference for the first time on May 7th and 8th.  It was held in Groton.  In the past I've been to conferences for the New Hampshire and Massachusetts Library Associations.  Nuggets:

With the right leadership and creativity, your program attendance can increase substantially, even in the face of cut funding.

Holding programs in a series is a good way to generate excitement.

Incorporate programs that bring in a harder-to-reach demographic:  gardening and fishing programs can draw middle-aged men, and a program on how to win at blackjack can reach a younger male demographic.

Evaluation and assessment are buzzwords relating to both programming (things that may have worked in the past may not be working anymore) and interlibrary loan (how much is happening in this area?).

The Rethinking Resource Sharing Initiative is independent of the American Library Association's RUSA-STARS, the interlibrary loan subgroup.  The Initiative has developed a useful checklist of best practices in interlibrary loan.

Everyday leadership means putting yourself in challenging situations; gaining fellowship (one's title is not enough); and is a conscious action.  It also connotes conducting daily interactions with consistency and integrity.

Start asking questions like the head of an organization.  Be a generalist; know it all.