Discovering your own style of library leadership

For Immediate Release
Mon, 07/01/2019

Contact:

Rob Christopher

Marketing Coordinator

ALA Publishing

American Library Association

3122805052

rchristopher@ala.org

CHICAGO — Author Jason Martin won’t tell you how to be a leader. In fact, that’s not the point of his new book “Library Leadership Your Way,” published by ALA Editions. Instead he’ll give you a roadmap and the tools to find it out for yourself, guiding you to discover why you want to lead, how you can best lead, and what your own unique leadership practice looks like. Activities will both allow you to explore your leadership identity and develop your leadership practice. Signposted with prompts for self-reflection, workshop discussions, and mentoring conversations, this guide’s topics cover core issues like:

  • discovering why you want to lead;
  • research findings on the five most desirable traits in library leaders;
  • wrestling with the constraints of organizational culture;
  • a tour of practical leadership models such as Theory Z, Situational Leadership, Transformational Leadership, and emotional intelligence;
  • how to develop habits that will bolster your confidence through inevitable moments of doubt;
  • cultivating a “people first, mission always” mentality;
  • self-care for leaders; and
  • living out your unique leadership vision through goal setting, self-evaluation, and other key steps.

Martin is associate dean of the James E. Walker Library at Middle Tennessee State University, where he oversees library assessment and professional development. He holds an EdD in educational leadership from the University of Central Florida and an MLS from the University of South Florida. He researches, publishes, and presents on leadership, organizational culture, mindfulness, emotional intelligence, productivity, and goal setting and achievement.

ALA Store purchases fund advocacy, awareness and accreditation programs for library professionals worldwide. ALA Editions and ALA Neal-Schuman publishes resources used worldwide by tens of thousands of library and information professionals to improve programs, build on best practices, develop leadership, and for personal professional development. ALA authors and developers are leaders in their fields, and their content is published in a growing range of print and electronic formats. Contact ALA Editions at (800) 545-2433 ext. 5052 or editionsmarketing@ala.org.