Just finished reading the Movers and Shakers from Library Journal and I was really excited about some of the programs these Librarians have implemented. Tony Tallent of PLCMC had a great one that he calls “Drop Everything and Learn Day”. He describes this as a “learn-and-play program encouraging staff to stay curious and inspired as they learn from one another.”

When I read this I just had a gut feeling that it would be an effective team building exercise/program for our staff. I would love to put the word out asking staff, “what skill do you have that you would like to teach your fellow workers”. We could then gather up these “mini” programs and offer them during an in-service day. Staff could pick and choose to attend what they think would be fun and helpful for them. Each one would be 45 minutes and throughout the day staff would rotate through the programs they choose.

Some ideas for mini programs: Yoga, 4 of my favorite Internet Tools (Flickr, Protopage, Pandora, Bloglines), Second Life 101, Independent Bookstores - Why They are good for libraries and for consumers, How to manage your schedule (and more) with Outlook, Time Management Tools, How to Improve Your Credit, Shopping for Bargains in Adams County (the best of the best) etc.

So many of our staff have interests that they are passionate about and by being asked to share their passions I think we can make a huge stride in building a “team” at our Library.