Yesterday I began the process of posting my 2024 reading resolutions by first looking back and assessing how I did on my 2024 resolutions. You can read that post here.
Today, I using what I learned by assessing how last year went, with the knowledge of what I already have planned for the coming year, I present my 2025 Goals-- the ones I will hold myself to for assessment a year from now. I use the term "reading resolutions" to keep the posts as similar as possible from year to year, but really this process is more akin to goal setting. However, since my work is defined by my mission, "training library workers to help leisure readers," reading is at the center of it all.Please remember, I post both my assessment of the year that was and the upcoming year on back-to-back days to begin each new year so thatchy are easy to find yes, but also I am forced to hold myself to account for it all. Because I am a big proponent of the "lead by example" leadership style. If I am advocating for you to make resolutions and then go back and assess how you did before making the next year's resolutions, I also have to do it myself.
These are my resolutions and goals for 2025. I create these for myself specifically; however, I hope you can use them to help you craft resolutions that will work best for you.
Finally, I want to make a plea to do resolutions or goals for yourself no matter how you are feeling. They do not have to be lofty. I love this post from 2022 in Book Riot, with easily achievable reading resolutions. These are no stress, and may seem silly on first glance, but I think they are great. Having something as a goal gives you direction and encouragement to keep moving forward. Small victories add up to larger advancements.
I would also like to note, 2025 is the year I turn 50. I know it is just a number, but it is big round one and bound to play a part in how my year goes. I will celebrate this milestone at ALA Annual in Philly, in sight of NJ (where I was born), with all of my library people. Seems fitting.
Okay now on to my 5 official resolutions for 2025:
2025 Resolutions: Read More Nonfiction: This one stems from yesterday's assessment. I hardly read any nonfiction in 2025 and I really love nonfiction. I am missing it in my life, so, I am going to go out of my way to read more. My biggest barrier is much of the NF I want to read is not on Libby in audio, and in my for fun reading, I really like to do audio. I have found that it helps my brain to separate work reading from fun reading, which when you are paid to review over 60 books a year, is important. I did set out to read more NF last year and found myself coming up against this barrier over and over again. But, it is also why I transitioned to mystery so heavily. I had a whole list of NF I meant to read but when it wasn't in audio, I put the print on hold and never got to it and settled for a Mystery instead (a fav audio genre). But here's the thing-- it took my assessment of 2024 for me to realize the actual reason. I saw that I was heavy on the mysteries and then also noted they were all audio. This led me to think about why and all of my reading over 2024. It helped me to remember all the NF I wanted to read but did not. Now I can work to be more aware of the fact that I am going to have to do print if I want to read these titles. Ans I am going to begin with one of the best books of 2024, a title I have wanted to read for months-- There's Always This Year by Hanif Abdurraqib.
2025 Resolution: Update My Signature Presentation: I have a note staring at me here near my work desk to update my 10 Rules and the slides for my signature presentation. Over the last 2 years I have changed what I say and emphasize in my presentation, but I haven't really changed the slides. I am not only going to give the rules a facelift, but I have some new posts in the works. The last time I gave the signature presentation an overhaul was late 2020, so it is time. I gave the Booktalking presentation-- my second most popular-- an overhaul last year. The work for this goal will really be concentrated in the first dozen weeks of 2025.
2025 Resolution: Actively Promote Others Who Can Do This Work: This is clearly the next step after last year's goal of being better at saying no. However, it is also here because if I am going to add things (see the next two goals), I need to start shedding things as well. I have been actively working on encouraging others who do similar work to take over some of the job inquiries I receive. Last year I passed on a few gigs to others; this year, I anticipate doing more. I don't have to be the only voice in RA out there. I have been around long enough and trained enough people that there are plenty out there who can do this work just as good as me. Also in a few months, Robin and I will have an announcement about you sending us your ideas on trends in RA and new things you are doing to be published in an academic journal. See, I am not kidding. I really want to identify the next stars and amplify their voices. But it is not just my RA training I am referring to here. I have also been encouraging more library workers to review Horror. I don't need to be the main voice in that field forever. In 2024 I read over 60 books for paid review-- 32 for LJ and 31 for Booklist. I can keep up the pace for now, but who knows what will happen going forward. Remember, turning 50. I also have a book with a major publisher coming out a year from now. I need to make sure I don't over do it because if that happens, my work will suffer and what good am I as the reviewer if my reviews are not up to the high standard I set for myself.
2025 Resolution: Start Officially Training Trustees: This comes directly from last year's resolution to start planning for when I am no longer "officially" in libraries. My term ends on 5/20/24 at 7pm. I have dipped my toe in training library trustees over the years but was never very comfortable with going into it head on for 2 reasons: 1. I did not feel like it was right to do this while still serving as a trustee and 2. I did not want to dilute my RA for All brand with work that was not focused on training library workers to help leisure readers. Well in October, I began a conversation about a way for me to take care of both of my concerns and still offer this valuable service. More information AFTER I am done serving in May, but I am happy to start providing this important service to those who choose to serve in this important role. I have 24 years of experience as a locally elected trustee, 3 years serving on the RAILS board, 3 years on the ILA Board, 25 years as a public librarian here in IL, and 15 years working with libraries all over the country. It is time for me to share my knowledge to help in a different sphere, but NOT through RA for All. Again, more details soon.
2025 Resolution: Begin To Think Bigger: Last year I doubled down on myself and it worked because it is has directly led to this goal, my last for 2025 and also my most nebulous, but like last year's vague goal of "doubling down on myself," it might prove to be the most important goal I set. I am going to use some bullet points here because there are a few things doubling down on myself has already led to for 2025:
- The most obvious result of doubling down on myself (discussed yesterday) was that I took my "Why I Love Horror" series, got an agent, sold it to Saga, and have turned in the manuscript. But what comes next? While the book does not come out until January 2026, I will be spending the second half of 2025 promoting it. I will begin in library spaces which are friendly and will get me ready, but I am going to be a published author in a major press (3 books at ALA Editions is not the same as I am already learning). People outside of library and horror writer spheres are going to read this and know who I am. I need to start being open to thinking bigger all year. Opportunities I never could imagine may come up and I need to be ready to embrace them.
- As I also mentioned yesterday, Robin and I will be guest editing a special RA forced issue of Library Trends in November 2026, but the bulk of our work on it happens in 2025. While this is thinking bigger for us, I am most excited for what we will learn by hosting an open call from all of your about your RA ideas. I am going to be exposed to awesome ideas, services, and concepts, the likes of which I have never even considered. Where will that lead me? I am excited that I don't know. I am sure something I learn from reading people's articles in 2025 will influence 2026's goals, but I also know I need to keep my mind open and ready to think bigger in order to do my best as a guest editor and a RA librarian.
- The final bigger thing I have committed to working on this year is a bit more vague and in the exploratory phase. My local library has needed to start a foundation for years but we had so many other things to deal with. Our current Executive Director is 100% all in on this being one of her goals for 2025-26 and since I will no longer be on the board and am already involved in another large charity in the area, I can come in with my connections and expertise to help lead this endeavor. My current plan is to be the Foundation Chair, but I am also open to taking a supporting role if things get too busy for me. This one has a longer time line as well. Our goal is for it to some together in 2026 as November 2027 is the 20th anniversary of our current building opening-- a building I worked on as a Trustee and for which I was the President of the Board when it opened. Talk about fun circle.
- These are the three things I have planned under this goal for 2025. Will this mean I move away from my core work-- helping library workers be better at helping leisure readers? I don't know, but knowing I have these bigger things planned means I also need to think about how I can't keep doing everything. As I mentioned yesterday, I have gotten better at saying no. I need to come to terms with the fact that I may have outgrown the niche I have created for myself. Thinking bigger is a process, however. I have listed those things I have planned to work on, but I have no idea where all of this will take me. Committing to thinking bigger will help me -- a consummate planner and list maker (aka librarian)-- to be ready to look at new opportunities with as open a mind as possible.
So those are my goals for 2025. We will have to wait and see how the year goes, but I feel good about what I intend to do precisely because I took the time at the end of 2024 to really think about the year that was ending and use what I learned about myself and my work to shape these goals.
Tomorrow I have a post about 2025's Horror books and then all of my January reviews in LJ and Booklist to round out the week. And first thing next week....a guest post by Robin. Lots planned here on RA for All. I also start contracts with some new states for monthly training. Busy, busy.
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