During the last six weeks, I shored up that active energy by being at my most, well, inactive. I decided shortly after Thanksgiving that I was not going to fret about the job hunt until the New Year. I would not look at one single ad, and boy did I succeed with flying colors. It was remarkably easy. Do I feel guilty about it? I might, just a little, but I wasn't alone. A news report that came through Forbes online states that unemployment rates are surprisingly down from 9.8% to 9.4%, and that some of that can be attributed to the holiday season. Others put off the search for employment through the holidays. That makes me feel connected.
I started the search again on January first. Well, I rearranged my apartment first, including, finally, putting my degrees in frames and up on the wall. It might seem silly that my degrees are on my bedroom wall by my desk instead of in a public area, like my office, but to me it's a way to motivate myself, to remind myself that I have the education and credentials to be a success in the information field. Anyway, I've compiled fifteen positions to which I'll apply over next week. I'm doing it. I'm going to try the numbers game. Why not?
I carefully read through one ad yesterday so that I could start to develop a sense of how to craft my cover letter, and you know, I have developed a critical eye for job ads, almost to the point that there are some to which I won't apply simply because I'm not satisfied with the lack of information (seriously, if your ad doesn't tell me at least the name of the company and its location, I'm looking at the next one). This ad had no such problem. It was very detailed concerning the duties of the position, to the point where I could envision it clearly (and worry how anyone in that position could get anything done). It's really a perfect illustration of what a public librarian does. It also perfectly illustrates the whole professional/paraprofessional issue. This job does not require a Masters in Library Science. It doesn't even require a four year degree, although one is encouraged. This could be defined as a paraprofessional job, and it pays a paraprofessional salary (which is still low, in my opinion, considering how hard paraprofessional librarians work. Also, the salary is about half of what I make now, which leads me to wonder if it would be foolish to even apply.). But this same job description could be applied to other institutions that do require professional credentials, or at least have in the past. It's what others have called the "de-professionalization" of librarians. It's one of those hot topics, you know (or maybe not, anymore, since I'm not all up-to-the-minute). And it was just an observation while reading through what was otherwise a great job (its greatness dimmed a little with the pay).
Anyway, was I talking about New Year's resolutions? Well, other than the usual eat healthier, drop some poundage,
Take that as you will.
No comments:
Post a Comment