I got back from the Florida Libraries Association (FLA) Conference a couple weeks ago. It was a great experience hanging out with my librarian colleagues from around the state and hearing about some of the things that they have been doing this past year.
Here are some of my favorite reasons to participate in the conference experience:
Learn Something
I learned quite a bit from the presentations. I saw several innovative solutions to common issues and pain-points and learned about some of the things that are going on at various levels of librarianship. Also, form an academic librarian, seeing how public librarians handle things is refreshing and inspiring. We have a lot to learn from each other.
Support Colleagues
Understatement alert: FIU was well represented at FLA. We received awards, presented full-length talks, produced several posters, and hold a few positions on several committees. All of these things can be done by any member, but my co-workers stepped up this year and did a bunch of cool stuff and I am proud to support them. They rocked!
Talk to Someone
This goes along with my first two points. But I was able to meet several cool librarians who invited me to do some stuff with them throughout the year and I will definitely take them up on the offer. Networking is great for finding new opportunities, and that doesn’t always mean looking for a new job. Opportunities are all around you, even where you are right now! You just need to know where to look.
Share Something
So yes, I presented a poster at FLA. I had a great time and handed out 17 of my 40 handouts. (It was my first time, I had no idea how to prepare!) More importantly, I talked to a bunch of people who gave me some great ideas and encouraged me to continue my work. Some of them even approached me the next day to continue the conversation, cool!
The poster is up on FIU’s repository right now. Find it here: e-Content in a Flash
