Quick Review of Samantha Hines' Productivity for Librarians: How to Get More Done in Less Time

Productivity for Librarians: How to Get More Done in Less Time. By Samantha Hines.  Oxford: Chandos Publishing, 2010.  158p. (ISBN 978-1-84334-567-1).  

Samantha Hines, a librarian at the University of Montana-Missoula, delivers in this small volume the tools for a busy librarian to begin organizing their work life.  In this book she surveys a number of popular productivity/organizational strategies and helps the reader decide which system, or which parts of which systems, would be most effective in their own work life.  Perhaps one of the better qualities of this book is that rather than dogmatically push a "one size fits all" approach to productivity she begins by asking the reader to define for themselves what they see as their vision of a productive work life.  This theme of asking the reader to consider their own goals, needs, and work habits runs throughout the book and make it far more useful to a wider variety of readers.

In working through the book, a better description of the experience you will have than to simply say "reading" it, the reader will learn how to set better goals and to identify commitments and habits that are limiting their productivity.  Many organizational and planning tools are presented, most of them common to the productivity literature.  Few librarians have not previously encountered SMART goals, To Do Lists, the concept of information overload, or goal setting exercises.  The added value in this book is the thoughtful way they are discussed and reconsidered in light of the duties of librarians.

Hines' provides an extensive survey of the various systems that are currently popular with business professionals such as Stephen Covey's Seven Habits of Effective People, David Allen's Getting Things Done and Timothy Ferriss' Four-Hour Workweek system.  Her short summations of the approach that these systems employ, along with a simple quiz she provides, should allow the reader to pick a system or two to look into further though the basic organizational skills she provides will suffice for some.  Finally, she provides a list of further resources to explore for those who are so inspired.  If like myself, you began the year hoping to finally get more organized at work, I highly recommend this book.