Four things I did not expect about being a librarian

1. Getting used to saying "you're welcome." Apparently I used to be very bad at this. I would shrug off thank yous with a "sure" or "it's OK." But "you're welcome" is actually the best response. I am pleasantly surprise at how often I am thanked.
2. Heavy lifting. I have moved more heavy things — books, furniture, shelves, computers — as a librarian than I ever did in previous jobs. When you picture librarians, you don't picture manual labor, do you?
3. Math. Oh, the numbers! Along with moving books come the calculations for how and where to move them, plus calculations for the amount of time and the number of people required. Librarians also love to track statistics for book checkouts, program attendees and library visitors. And then there are the budgets. Thankfully I only have to keep track of a few line items for the collections I manage — fiction books, audiobooks and ebooks.
4. Awkwardness. When you interact with the public all day, you never know what sort of interactions you might have. Some of them (people, conversations, questions) are very awkward. But as a side benefit, I may have learned to control my blush reaction, at least in part.

Comments

[mumsy]

I'm ready for a Book of Lists.