Making the Change

Lately I’ve been caught in this maelstrom of change and decisions and overall stress.  At work, I was told I would be getting a “promotion”, but the timeline and actual job duties were nebulous at best.  I was already thinking about leaving the legal field; I craved the support and environment of the academic field.  And, to be honest, I was tired of fighting to prove the value of the library.  It felt like every time I turned the corner I was having to argue with an attorney about why the library was an important asset to the firm.

The icing on the cake was when I interviewed at a college for an all-around library position: reference, instruction, tech support, collection management and development…everything I was already doing, but in a broader field and with students.  I interviewed with four librarians.  It wasn’t a very long interview, and with the tour of the campus I was there for maybe an hour.  I left feeling like the interview hadn’t gone badly, but that I hadn’t made any particular impression on them. 

Still, I followed up with an email the next morning, thanking them all for their time and the tour of the campus, as well as reiterating that I was very interested in working for the college.  And then I went back to the law library.  A week later, I got a call. 

“We would like to offer you the position if you are still interested…”

Still interested?  I was ready to dive deeper into that maelstrom and come out on top.  I accepted the position and we set a start date for two and a half weeks later.

I wrote my letter of resignation and brought it to the office manager (since as the librarian I didn’t have a defined superior). 

“Were you actively looking for another job?” she asked me.  “I know you haven’t been happy here, but we were going to change your position soon and…”

I appreciated what she was saying, but the truth of the matter is that the legal field does not leave much room for growth unless you intend on getting a J.D. and practicing law.  I did not intend on doing that.

So now, I am almost a month in as an academic librarian.  And I love it, every aspect.

I love that students come ask me questions.  I love that faculty stops by to chat and see what new audio books we have.  I even love shelving the used books.  It’s funny (not ha-ha funny, but more peculiar-funny) that I didn’t realize I was becoming burnt out at the law firm.  But switching fields back to academia reignited that fire and I couldn’t be happier.

Goodbye maelstrom and stress, and hello change and decisions!