Some Words: Life Has Prepared Me for the Reference Desk

What makes a good reference librarian?

There's the obvious stuff - knowing where to look, technical search strategies, and an abundance of persistence. But some of my best reference moments have had less to do with professional training and more to do with my life.

I grew up in Cooperstown, New York - the home of the Baseball Hall of Fame. So when a student asked for help researching rules changes in baseball, I didn't just point them to a database. I practically inundated them with material none of my colleagues would have been able to rattle off the top of their heads.

Then I became a parent, which meant searching and absorbing all things kids. When another parent asked about playgrounds within walking distance of campus, I didn't have to dig. I had a list of options in my head with some opinions to go with them.

Living in DC has been its own kind of training. Local government resources - looking at you DMV! - are notoriously hard to navigate. That firsthand frustration makes me a better guide when someone comes to the desk not knowing where to start.

And then there's leisure reading. When a student came in looking for something like Fourth Wing, that is my wheelhouse. I read a lot of romantasy. I just had to figure out what tropes this reader preferred before I gave some options
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Being a reference librarian is funny like that. You can be professionally trained and educated in all the ways a librarian should work, but most of what you know comes from personal experience. Literally everything I do in life could, one day, turn into a reference question.

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