“Stay awkward, brave and kind”
Brené Brown
Last week I had the privilege of hearing wise words from three remarkable women – all featured speakers at the American Library Association’s annual conference. Thousands gathered to hear from Michigan governor Gretchen Whitmer, ex-Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden, and Brené Brown, academic and leadership guru.
Each has experienced professional and personal setbacks – loss, misunderstanding, unfairness. And yet they persevere, they move forward and seek connection and strength from their community.
Reviewing my jottings from these talks, I’m struck by a theme: Strength and leadership may come from a place of humility, not pomposity or arrogance. Governor Whitmer cited Walt Whitman’s words of advice, “Be curious, not judgmental.” (Although my daughter insisted Ted Lasso first spoke them.) She goes on to describe apology as a strength of leadership – if you never admit to being wrong, you will never learn from your mistakes.
Similar ideas were shared by Brené Brown. Brown, educated as a social worker, is well-known for her research on vulnerability and shame, demonstrating how vulnerability is not a weakness but a strength. Courage is the ability to show up when you don’t know the outcome. Leaders hold themselves responsible for people and processes. They need to be interested more in getting something right than in being right. Leaders are learners not knowers.
It is always an honor to hear from Carla Hayden, here in conversation with author Kwame Alexander. They are good friends, and the crowd of 1000 were friendly as well. So we were privileged to hear Hayden describe the surreal experience of her recent firing — by email. The cited reason was the Library of Congress’ holdings in DEI material made available to children.
In spite of these obstacles and frustrations, Hayden encourages us to “move on.” Get out of your bubble. Keep doing what you are doing. There is strength in numbers.
What does this have to do with library assessment? Assessment, like leadership, is about continuous improvement and learning. It’s about asking questions and listening, rather than assuming, to improve the work we do and the services we provide. It’s having the confidence to know that difficult situations can change if we gather together as a community.
When reflecting on the events of the past year, particularly the de-funding of the Institute of Museum and Library Services (ILMS), ALA president Cindy Hohl began to choke up. The audience cried, “It’s okay.” This was a moving experience for me. The collective support shown at the conference, in the face of many obstacles, renewed my pride in being a librarian professional.