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by Tina Oswald
What can you say about having a whole workweek to contemplate your career and where you would like your career to go? Five days to discuss problems and concerns, failures and triumphs with others in the library science field. Talking over ideas and discussing challenges with other mid-career librarians. It is an exciting, slightly daunting idea! It is also a reality for those involved in the Texas Library Associationit is the TALL Texans Leadership Development Institute.
Getting involved is as easy as getting nominated. Feel free to nominate yourself; you deserve the chance to go just as much as anyone else does. However, be prepared for the lengthy application you receive to fill in. Follow the instructions on filling it out to the letter! Remember, you will never be selected if you do not apply. My main reason for applying was the fact that a former co-worker had been involved as a participant, and she told me that it was one of the best experiences of her career. She also told me that it was loads of fun! I am here to tell you that she was right, on both counts.
The setting for the Institute is Harambe Oaks Ranch. It is a beautiful place, but very remote and removed. There are no televisions and only one pay phone for guests to use. You will share the Institute's space with 23 other participants, six mentors, and two facilitators. Once you arrive, you will be assigned to a room that you will share with two other participants. Of course, this is a TLA event, so you all have name tags. These are worn for the duration of the Institute. (I am really bad at learning people's namesafter seeing name tags with the faces for five days, even I could remember people's names.) You will likely not know anyone else at the Institute, but that does not last for very long. You and the others have been chosen to participate, so there is a sense of community, belonging, and camaraderie that quickly grows. At the end of the Institute, these will be good friends and colleagues that you can call on at any time. (The TALL Texans of 1999 have an e-mail distribution list, so we are still in contact with one another.)
The Institute's purpose is to give mid-career librarians the chance to get away from the hectic pace of work and home life, so that they can concentrate on themselves, their careers, and their involvement in the Texas Library Association. Once you are removed from all outside interference, you can concentrate on you. Speaking as a mom who works outside of the home, this was a unique experience for me. It seems that I never have the time to focus on my career. Where would I like to be in five years? How would I like to get involved in the Texas Library Association? There is no time in the day to sit quietly and think about my career. Pulling me away from work and home gave me the freedom to focus on my career and myself. At first it felt strange ? no one calling for "Mommy," no reference desk questions, no University meetings. It also made me feel a little uneasy. Is it okay to focus on myself and concentrate on what I want and need from my career? As a parent and a person in a "helping" profession, the answer is usually NOno time, no energy! We focus on satisfying the needs of others. But, as a TALL Texans participant, the answer is YES! You get five days to focus on your career.
One of the first things we did in our first session on Monday afternoon was the Myers-Briggs test, one of those tests with no right or wrong answers ? my favorite kind! This test determines your strongest personality traits and tells you a lot about yourself. Some of the things you find out about yourself from Myers-Briggs you may already know, but there are bound to be some surprises as well. This can give you insights into the ways that you work best and how you can more positively interact with others. We talked about our results the rest of the week as we discussed work situations and how to better manage others and ourselves.
We had classroom type sessions in the mornings and afternoons. The two facilitators were Maureen Sullivan and Jack Siggins. She owns a library consulting firm, and Jack is the University Librarian at George Washington University. You may have had the chance to hear Maureen speak at TLA, and she is a wonderful facilitator for TALL Texans. She gives a lot of insight into organizations and how they work. Not only did the two facilitators teach, but they also listened and became part of the community. We were a learning community, and everyone that came in contact with us was pulled into it.
In fact, there was so much to learn and comprehend that I am still synthesizing the TALL Texans experience.
It was not all work. In fact, some of the best learning experiences happened during the breaks and free time. If you were willing to get up early, then you could join the walkers for a 30-minute walk before breakfast. At night there was free time. You could play UNO, put together jigsaw puzzles, play water volleyball in the pool, relax in the hot tub, read or talk. We all did lots of talking and lots of listening.
The mentors were also there to learn, as well as advise. They were wonderful people who were active in TLA and were farther along in their careers. They were always available for a private consultation during the free times and made great facilitators when we broke up into small groups. They were more than willing to listen, to advise, and to discuss.
Within five days, we were a learning community, and we had created an environment where everyone felt free to share their ideas, to ask questions, and to challenge old ways of thinking. We all knew one another (through the nametags and lots of interaction) and felt accepted and appreciated for our strengths and our weaknesses. All of us helped make up the community. We knew that if anyone of us had not attended, the community would have been incomplete. It was a real team atmosphere with everyone contributing.
When I had gone to TLA meetings, prior to the Institute, I often felt like an outsider. It is not hard to get involved in TLA, but it can be hard to get to know others on Round Table committees. Many people in TLA have worked their entire careers in the state of Texas. People have worked at different libraries within the state and know one another because of prior work relationships. I am a Texas transplant with over 10 years in the profession, but none of it in Texas. Being a TALL Texans participant gave me a group of TLA members from across the state that I know. Going to TLA Annual Assembly in July after being at the Institute in May was great! While I was still in the hotel parking lot, three TALL Texans 1999 participants greeted me. This gives a sense of belonging in TLA. Also, the Institute had us concentrate on our role in TLA, so we felt an intregral part of the organization.
It is hard to put down in words what it meant to be a participant in the TALL Texans Leadership Institute. The experience changed me. It increased my self-confidence, and it gave me insights into TLA and how it works. To be given the time to sit back and re-evaluate my career left me feeling refreshed and recharged. I am more appreciative of the opportunity that I have to work at a career that I really enjoy. TALL Texans gave me the chance to realize that the sky is the limit in terms of my career and my involvement in TLA!
Tina Oswald is a reference librarian at the Steen Library, Stephen F. Austin University, and a 1999 TALL Texan.