My entire career, I've shied away from vendor associations. I often joke that there are some folks in my line of work who should really wear Nascar style jackets, plastered with library and edtech company logos, in order to show off all the ways their work is sponsored. To be clear, there's absolutely nothing wrong with partnering with companies whose products you believe in. And I also know that sometimes schools, districts and even big conferences, can't afford to bring speakers to their events without the support of vendors. Still... I've always wanted to maintain a safe distance from those collaborations, mostly because I never wanted to feel like I was in a position of having to say I loved a product or service when I didn't. And more recently, I've also found this arm's length relationship has freed me to be honest when I feel a company's policies are harmful to library workers and/or kids.
Last year, I made an exception when I began a relationship with Bookelicious. The thing that drew me to Bookelicious to begin with was their people. A number of friends, people I love and respect and have known for many, many years, were already part of #TeamBookelicious - and that made me curious. What I soon learned was that the Bookelicious mission is aligned with my own. Yes, Bookelicious is an online independent bookstore, but they are also so much more. At its heart, Bookelicious is really a discovery tool whose mission it is to help kids discover themselves as readers. And they do that in lots of ways:
They offer unique and innovative fundraising opportunities to help librarians put more books in the hands of their students.
They offer no hassle virtual author events to connect readers with book creators.
They offer free and paid professional development for educators including:
They offer collection development support from library/literacy experts (like me!)
They've created the most fun and innovative ways to match kids to books.
And, y'all... they are just getting started!
I mention all of this only because, this week I got to learn and share at the Santa Clara County Office of Education's Library Camp, providing back to school PD for library workers across 14 bay area school districts - a trip that wouldn't have happened without support from Bookelicious, who not only helped to sponsor the conference, but they also helped sponsor my trip there. As I said, I've never partnered with a vendor in this way before, so this was uncharted territory for me and, I'll be honest... I was nervous!
It's important to me that the library workers I support know that my work, my recommendations and my drive to uplift those who help kids become readers, writers and thinkers are all sincere. Put another way, I'm not a sales person. I never want someone sitting in one of my workshops or keynotes to feel as though I'm trying to sell them something. I've always been very intentional in telling those I work with that I only recommend products and services that I truly love. All of that is still true.
Anyway, turns out, I had nothing to be nervous about. In fact, while connecting with the 300+ California library workers who attended Library Camp was my favorite part of the event, hanging out with my Bookelicious family was a close second. If you were there, and had a chance to meet Lea Anne or Lorien, I'm sure you walked away understanding why I love these people and this company so much. If anything, this first event with Bookelicious only confirmed that these are my people. And I'm guessing many of you would feel the same way.
BRAVE INSTEAD OF PERFECT
I led two concurrent sessions at Library Camp and gave the closing keynote. Both my concurrent sessions were information literacy related - focusing on helping kids parse credibility on the apps they use most (hello, TikTok!) and helping connect digital readers with print books that feel safe and relevant to kids whose brains are used to making meaning from content found on screens. These sessions were fun and I was delighted by the energy of participants who were consistently engaged and curious.
In planning for Library Camp this year, I got my wires crossed and thought, for the longest time, that my afternoon keynote would be focused on information literacy, too... but in the end, I was asked to instead create something that focused on lifting up library workers who may sometimes feel like they don't have the support and tools they need to do the best job possible for the readers they serve. With this in mind, I created a keynote that centered the idea of imposter syndrome and how social media can sometimes makes it impossible not to compare ourselves with others - both personally and professionally. And as we all know... comparison is the thief of joy.
Ironically, it turns out that this was just the message I needed to hear, too, as I spent much of the second day of Library Camp absolutely convinced that no one would attend my sessions. Even after plenty of people turned up for my first presentation, I was certain no one would make it to the second one... and after that, even when the second session was packed full of library workers... my inner saboteur convinced me that no one would show up to the keynote.
Now... I'm smart enough to know that much of this thinking is the result of too much time spent online, recently, where my feeds have been full of people, like me, sharing (what appear to be) perfect appearances, at perfect events, filled with thousands of perfect, adoring fans. On the surface, it's easy to label these feelings as envy, but it's really imposter syndrome. I find myself both delighted for those who are posting about their professional accomplishments while simultaneously being shaken by the fear that I'm not of that caliber. These feelings exist in parallel. And they can be debilitating, even when you now the voices in your head are liars.
As an aside, in preparing for the keynote, I wanted to understand more about the history and origins of imposter syndrome. Through this research, I learned that imposter syndrome is a phenomenon that was first described in 1978 by psychologists who noticed how highly successful women, (like themselves), often felt they were undeserving of the success they were experiencing. These feelings can lead to mental health crises and can be exacerbated by comparing yourself to others. Unsurprisingly, instances of imposter syndrome have risen dramatically as our lives become more influenced by social media, where comparison is unavoidable. And while those who identify as women continue to be the primary reporters of this phenomenon, imposter syndrome is experienced by people of all genders and is increasingly more prevalent in young people.
It's in that context, that I gave a closing keynote all about library workers and imposter syndrome. My talk centered the idea that we have to abandon the quest for perfection and celebrate the practices that may not feel Insta or TikTok worthy, but that make a difference for the people who matter so much more than those who may follow us on social media. At a time when library workers are increasingly the target of politically motivated attacks, the communities we serve don't need us to be perfect. They need us to be brave. And that doesn't mean putting yourself in harm's way. But it does mean showing up and continuing to try.
I'm so grateful to everyone at this year's Library Camp who proved my inner saboteur wrong by showing up to my sessions. After the keynote, so many people came up to me to share their own stories of not feeling good enough or valued by those whose job it is to support them. I'll be thinking about these stories for a long time. Thank you for continuing to show up and for continuing to give yourself permission to try in the face of so many obstacles. Thank you for continuing to be brave - even when so many of the messages we encounter suggest that anything less than perfect just isn't good enough. I see you.
MY LIBRARY CAMP SESSIONS
Click the images below to access my slide decks. This should probably without saying, but just in case... FYI: these slide decks are view only. Options for downloading your own copy have been disabled. While you're more than welcome to view and share them, I don't allow others to adapt and edit them.
đ¶ BETWEEN SESSIONS
As an extremely introverted person, when I'm at a conference, I often wear headphones between sessions. Not only do they cancel out the surrounding noise, but they also afford me the opportunity to wrap myself in something familiar: music. If we're ever at a conference together and you see me wandering around with headphones on, this doesn't mean you can't say hello to me. It does mean, however, that I might not hear you when you call my name, so don't be afraid to give me a wave or tap me on the shoulder, too. For anyone who might be interested, here's my current go-to playlist.Â
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