Continuity or Revolution: Choose Your Own Adventure

A little while ago I saw this tweet:

"How much of what seems real or reasonable to you is decided by a preference for continuity?" - a question for everyone including scientists

— Drew (@MostlyPregnant) August 26, 2015

I shared that with a friend who then introduced me to the idea of "Kuhnian Paradigm Shift." Thomas Kuhn was a philosopher who looked at scientific development. He proposed that, unlike what had been conceived previously (and what I mostly learned in k-12, decades after his most important work, The Structure of Scientific Revolutions was published), that scientific progress is not a steady thing. Rather than being an inevitable march forward, science goes through longer periods of tinkering and refinement, interspersed with major upheaval.

This strikes me as deeply relevant to libraries and librarians. Bringing this idea down to the day-to-day level, I don't think continuity is the worst thing in the world. We librarians are human (well, most of us are) who are supporting the needs of our community, who are also human, and humans tend not to like change. I'm including myself in this category. Unexpected change can bring both sleep and tummy troubles. And yet, I also consider myself an innovator. Practical innovation is a particular passion of mine. Seeing that tweet and subsequently learning about Kuhn has me thinking about change in libraries and higher education, and about how it happens both quickly and slowly. It also has me thinking about how we bring about how we and our communities react to them.

So what am I trying to say here? I guess it's that we need to be mindful of our own practices and preferences, but also recognize that not everyone feels the same. I've heard "because we've always done it that way" used in so many different ways. For some it's, "but I'm open to other ways of doing it." For others it's, "and I'm really afraid of changing because I'm a slow learner and I know how to do it this way." And yet others mean it to say, "and can we please change it yesterday?" Whether you're a stalwart champion of the status quo; or a tinkerer who makes things incrementally better; or are the Galileo of the library world who is going to cause upheaval on an inconceivable level... think about that question up there every once in a while. Think about our preference for continuity - not as a bad thing nor as a good one - before you choose the next step.

Mistakes Happne

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Today is another post where I'm not sure I have advice so much as questions, but it's been on my mind a lot lately so I want to share. You see, I've been thinking a lot about change and innovation. Mostly my thoughts have centered on how it's a messy messy process. But also, I've been considering how innovation intersects with impostor syndrome. This idea is at the heart of a keynote I'll be giving later this month, a keynote I'm still writing. So here I am writing a blog post about it since I needed something for today and since I think best when typing.

Idea #1: Mistakes Happen
Everyone makes mistakes. Everyone. This isn't just lip service here, either. I have made plenty of mistakes myself. There are the small ones like the blog I tried to start at my last institution that was all book reviews by people associated with that school and geared towards people associated with that school. I think I got about 4 posts before the blog died. Then there are big ones, like my ill-fated step outside of librarianship. I try my darnedest to learn from all my mistakes, but the best thing I learned is that there is no avoiding them.

Idea #2: Innovation Means Mistakes
I don't mean innovation as a buzzword. I don't mean innovation for innovation's sake. What I'm talking about here is the constant but purposeful drive to improve and grow and reach. The Wright Brothers were famous mistake makers. As was Edison. How about Einstein's math skills? Or Temple Grandin? Famous innovators, all. Mistake makers, all.

Idea #3: Being New Means Mistakes
Something I try to convince new staff members of is that we expect them to make mistakes. It's not that we don't think they are smart enough or capable or hardworking, it's just that there's a learning curve. Always. Even if you're just starting at a new library after decades as a librarian, you still have to learn the culture. But I know I've had problems with feeling like I'm faking it, even though I have a mentee of my own.

Idea #4: We Have to Make Mistakes Less Scary
This is the part where I'm kind of stumped. I know that it helps me to keep a Joi Ito quote, "Resilience over strength," in mind. But I've had years of experience to teach me how to bounce back from mistakes. I was a lot less secure about it when I was new to the field. I believe those of us who have been in our fields longer need to be more forthcoming about our mistakes. I've also got some thoughts about rewarding smart mistakes, but those aren't as fully-formed.

Does this make sense? Does it at least make more sense than Madam Cur-catie up there? What do you all think? I'd really love to hear from people, either here or on Twitter or even via email, on the subject of supporting people as they learn and make mistakes.


And, for the record, the typo in the title is on purpose. Inspired by one of my favorite hashtags.