This week is our winter break which is always a staycation for me. It means catching up on the stacks of books that have been piling up (with no end in sight, but I’m not complaining) and also arranging some brief encounters with my colleagues who otherwise are stacked with a to-do list a mile long being their fabulous librarian selves. This post is a reminder to take the time to cultivate these relationships when you can.
We do a disservice to ourselves professionally when we don’t take the time to share what we’re doing with colleagues while simultaneously learning from them (and occasionally stealing their ideas). They can reflect and question why and what you’re doing while also encouraging you to be at your best. And having these conversations over a beer or a walk in nature is even better.

We rarely stop to take a picture together, so this was a run in with each other this past summer!
I have several quick meet-ups this week, but it started with my friend Stacey Rattner last night. Getting back home made me think how lucky I am to call her a colleague though she works in an elementary library and I work at a secondary one in separate districts. We have so much in common, but we operate so differently. We want and believe the same things for our students and that kind of passion rekindles and spreads like an infectious disease. So how do we do it? We schedule it!
So you’re homework this week is to pick a former colleague, work wife or work husband, or current colleague that you just don’t see enough of and contact them for a meet up. It could be a quick drink or a quick walk, but don’t miss out on the opportunity.