In Practice

Meredith FarkasBy Meredith Farkas
American Libraries Columnist

Distance learning librarian, Norwich University, Northfield, Vermont
librarysuccess@gmail.com

January/February 2008

 

What Friends Are For

Capitalizing on your online Rolodex

There are times at work when we all have to go outside our comfort zone or areas of expertise. Perhaps you’re working on a new technology or a subject guide in an area you know little about. You can struggle for hours, days, or weeks on your own, or you can recognize that you’re probably not the first librarian who’s experienced this. None of us can be experts in everything; sometimes we need to depend on the advice of others to get through a particularly difficult task.

Fortunately, there are social technologies that make it easy to build an online network to tap in times of need. Tools like Facebook (facebook .com) and Twitter (twitter.com) allow people to easily make friends and share ideas. Whether your “friends” (in Facebook) or “followers” (in Twitter) are people you’ve met in the physical world, or people you only interact with online, most of them would be willing to offer advice on topics in their areas of expertise.

The right connections

In Facebook, people build a network of friends and colleagues. You can see friends’ profiles and learn what their interests are and what they’re working on. Twitter is a tool that allows you to let your friends know what you’re up to in 140 characters or less—a genre called micro-blogging—and then broadcasts your updates to all of the people who have chosen to follow you. They can respond to you through Twitter as well.

With both of these tools, you can keep up with what your friends and colleagues are doing without ever needing to contact them directly.

When I first started using Twitter and Facebook, I didn’t see their potential as professional development tools. One day, though, I examined my list of friends on Facebook, and realized I was looking at an online Rolodex full of experts. I saw experts on podcasting, library catalogs, engineering resources, web design, and much more. Here was this network of smart people who were likely ready and willing to share their knowledge. All I had to do is message them in Facebook.

Groupthink tank

With Twitter, you can benefit from the wisdom of the crowd rather than the advice of a single expert. The other day, I was working on a subject guide for finding economic data, a topic that is definitely outside my comfort zone. That afternoon, I wrote on Twitter: “trying to create a guide to finding economic data, which is funny, because I don’t know what half of what I’m looking at means!” Within 15 minutes, I had suggestions from four of my followers on Twitter and an e-mail from a fifth with detailed advice.

Just as you can find help, you’ll also find many opportunities to assist others. I’ve helped someone prepare for a book discussion on one of my favorite titles through Facebook, and offered advice through Twitter on configuring wiki software. These networks are only effective if people are willing to stick around and offer as much advice as they get.

Just as we can’t talk to our colleagues at the water cooler all day, there has to be a balance between getting our work done and networking online. Sometimes, these tools can eat up too much time on the job. It’s the same with any professional development activity (i.e., reading journals, going to conferences): We all need to find that happy balance between networking and learning, and our daily responsibilities.

The next time you see a colleague logged into Twitter or Facebook while at work, don’t assume he or she is playing on the job. Your coworker may just be learning something that will benefit your library and its patrons.