‘‘ T


It will be interesting to see how an ‘any time, any place, anywhere’ policy can overcome a loss of ... emotional connectivity?


President’s View


‘Put your oxygen mask on before helping others...’


HIS is a phrase most of us have heard before, though not these past four months as lockdown has curtailed


international travel. It surfaced again in a series of virtual conversations I’ve been the catalyst of in April about the mental impact of isolation. Many, I included, have worked continuously over the last 12 months, while also giving time to help others and their community. Lockdown fatigue is taking a toll as Michaela Murphy, a relationship counsellor, noted in an excellent journal post (www.michaelamurphy.co.uk/journal/turning- invisible): “…it struck me recently that one of the perhaps less obvious things contributing to a widespread general low mood amongst many, is the dramatic reduction in ‘feeling seen’ by others.” PWC, Nationwide and others have announced that post pandemic all staff can work remotely, but it’s not proving popular with everyone and a hybrid model seems to be the emerging consensus. It will be interesting to see how an “any time, any place, anywhere” policy can overcome a loss of what Michaela describes as emotional connectivity: “...we’re missing out on the life-affirming impact of seeing our value reflected back at us through the eyes of our friends, family, work colleagues and clients”.


Working virtually has proved beneficial though. Luis Suarez, a good friend, social business and digital transformation thought leader who has worked with Enterprise Social Networks (ESN’s) for decades and at the head of the #nomoreemail movement, said: “Through ESNs I have been capable of building incredibly strong (personal) relationships with folks who I haven’t been able to meet up face-to-face in over


April-May 2021


15 years. And yet, I trust them way more than I do plenty of the people I’ve met face-to-face over that same period.”


HRH Prince Philip


I was saddened by the passing of HRH Prince Philip, The Duke of Edinburgh. Many of our members have lost loved ones over the past year so will be empathising with his family as they struggle to come to terms with his loss. I only learned on taking office that the Duke was one of my predecessors, so I wrote expressing my condolences and that of our organisation to Her Majesty.


In conversation with... Stories, advice and keywords that stuck – Firstly, a huge thank you to the following members, Lou Peck, Rosalind Francis, Jane Secker, Wayne Sime, Nicky Forgham-Healey, Charlotte Begg and Alison Turner for being generous with their time and ideas. Thursday at 4pm is now a fixed event in “The Presidential Diary”. If you’d like to book a spot please contact me via the CILIP website or president@cilip.org.uk.


Here are some of their words of advice:


“Communication is the most important tool in whatever role you have.” – Rosalind Francis


“Be prepared to help the digitally illiterate and those on the outskirts of society.” – Charlotte Begg


“Build yourself a network – who you know, talk to people in the profession. Volunteer! Go and join other events.” – Jane Secker


“…realise opportunities – treat everything as an opportunity. Everything is possible.” – Lou Peck


“Key characteristic of a leader: Communication,” – Wayne Sime.


“Little conversations are important so perfect your elevator pitch.” – Nicki Forgham-Healey


Paul Corney (president@cilip.org.uk) is President of CILIP. www.cilip.org.uk/


INSIGHT


“Be bold – get the ideas out there. Don’t be scared, hesitancy doesn’t pay.” – Alison Turner


Alison illustrated how that approach helped kick start a research project into the impact of Long Covid, saying: “I reached out on Twitter to a Doctor who described his experiences of living with the impact of Long Covid and invited him to an event we were running. As a result, I persuaded my management and the NHS to fund a systematic programme of activities to learn from emerging knowledge on Long Covid. We will be feeding those learnings into service provision to improve care for patients.”


Keywords Communicate. Facilitate. Investigate.


Presidential “debate” The next edition will feature, Kate Thompson a Sunday Times best-selling novelist, ghostwriter and journalist. Many of you will have seen Kate’s recent Guardian article about how Bethnal Green Library was saved from closure. In our session on 30 June Kate will be talking about her forthcoming book The Little Wartime Library, which tracks 100 years of a library through the lens of 100 librarians. If you have a topic, you would like discussed, get in touch: president@cilip.org.uk IP


INFORMATION PROFESSIONAL 15


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