Kristen Mastel

Extending Our Reach: Surveying, Analyzing, and Planning Outreach to Extension Staff

This study describes how University of Minnesota Extension staff locate and use information to accomplish daily activities. The major findings were: (a) information seeking is a daily or weekly need; (b) staff use predominately online resources from a variety of sources—peer-reviewed journals, technical or research reports, and government information—and use search engines most frequently to locate them; and (c) Extension staff are aware of the majority of library resources and services. Extension staff welcome advanced information-seeking tools and techniques for professional development.

7 - Be an ironman at work: Work with your strengths

Abstract: There is no one perfect set of strengths, rather in a survey of leaders from around the world turned up that they possess a wide variety of talents. The one common bond they all demonstrated is that they know when to use the right strength at the right time. The StrengthsFinder™ assessment tool “helps people find their talents.” Many leadership and behavioral surveys focus on deficiencies rather than championing one’s natural talents. StrengthsFinder™ gives a “Top 5” ranked list of themes to provide you with an overview of how you might use these strengths professionally and personally. Are you a Woo, too? In this chapter, I will demonstrate how I have used my top five themes as an outreach librarian, along with professional service roles. Knowing your own strengths and the strengths of your colleagues can open influential dialogues, assist in strategic planning, and encourage staff appreciation.