I’ve spent most of today preparing for a joint department retreat that I’m co-leading next Friday. We’re incorporating some of the tools learned through participation in the EXCITE Transformation for Libraries learning program that several of us in the library have attended over the past year. One of these tools is the use of picture cards to prompt responses. For example, I give you a picture of a chicken and you share how you’re like the picture and how you’re not like it. You can really ask any kind of question. The goal is to use the images to help you think creatively.
Here’s one to try:
Kangaroo Island, South Australia
How is this picture like your job? How is it not like your job?
My answers: It’s like my job because I always have something going on, some movement, some project, some task to tackle. They ebb and flow, like waves, but never stop completely. It’s not like my job because it’s repetitive. The waves have a rhythm to them. My job can be different every day. Now you’re turn. Feel free to add your answers in the comments section.
New Arrivals!
I was most excited when my brand new, hot-off-the-press copy of Stephanie Evergreen’s Effective Data Visualization, 2nd Edition arrived early this week. The 1st edition has been an invaluable resource over the past few years. The latest offers up a whole new section on charts for qualitative data, plus additional types of charts and graphs for quantitative data. Evergreen is a terrific instructor and her knowledge jumps from the page. I’ve touted her work numerous times on my blog. Count this as one more. She’s a go-to resource, for sure.
I also treated myself to her new, The Data Visualization Sketch Book. It’s filled with tips and templates, all designed to get my thinking cap and my pencil going before I sit down at my computer. This is a vital step in good data visualization and one that too often gets skipped. The sketch book is a nice tool to build the habit into your process.
That’s it for this week. Thanks for reading, enjoy the holiday weekend (here in the USA), and happy graduation to many! Until next time…
A Librarian by Any Other Name 
That’s so interesting! My boss (Liz Gaufberg) of the last 6 years had these Visual Explorer cards we used ALL the time: at every conference we set up, in teaching medical students, in convening new groups of people, etc. https://solutions.ccl.org/Visual-Explorer-Letter-Deck
We would lay them out on tables or hang them on the wall and instruct people “Find an image that has something to say about humanism in medicine” or “Find an image that represents your project” or “Find an image that has something to say about an experience you had as a patient.”
People would return to their small groups and INSTANTLY share, making deeper connections than most other ice breakers seem to foster. People seemed to be able to be a little more vulnerable because they werent being asked a direct question and could control the narrative.
Liz and our colleague Maren wrote a paper about the use of these kinds of “Third Things” in medical education. You might find it interesting: https://ecommons.med.harvard.edu/ec_res/73D557CB-FFC4-4F84-8329-88C1D11AFE2B/third_thing_final.pdf
Thanks, Brandy! Wonderful example and I look forward to reading the article. 🙂
The photo is like my job in that it is ever changing, sometimes rough, I don’t want to get caught in the undertow (pulled away from the library goals) and crash into the rocks(miss goals, deadlines, not get projects done, etc). It is constantly moving, things are growing daily even if you don’t see it right away (projects/grass). It’s colorful, like the many different types of people I see every day (students, residents, fellows, faculty, sometimes patients). It’s not like my job because I typically find waves to be very calming and soothing and helpful to put me to sleep. That’s not quite like my work ;).