Change: We can't avoid it, so let's manage it.

This month's newsletter focuses on change--the movement from summer to fall being one change we can't miss. As we dig out our heavier clothes in preparation for cooler weather, we're adapting ourselves to our environment so that we can enjoy the changes coming rather than be inconvenienced by them. That's managing change, and it's a skill that we can apply in many other situations.

With the retirement of Sheila Ross Henderson as our Pasadena Public Library Director, we know the dynamism and leadership she showed during her decade tenure will be greatly missed. The real progress she made here remains as her legacy, and we know we will have to manage changes ahead to keep the Pasadena Public Library the vital and valuable part of community life that has been forged in years past.

What kind of changes? We're in a new economic environment, one that is asking more of each employee just as taxpayers are doing more with less these days. We'll be looking at ways to be more flexible in our job roles and more responsive to patron needs, even as we work within a smaller budget and with fewer staff. More than ever, we want to nurture the kind of employee attitude that recognizes the necessity of facing change while discovering a positive role that can be played to manage change, to the benefit of the library's patrons and the community. And importantly, we just might learn something about our own ability to meet challenging situations...and overcome them.

Change. As Heraclitus noted 2,500 years ago, life is constantly changing.  We're going to do our best to manage the changes ahead here at the Pasadena Public Library, preserve the progress made over the last ten years, and begin to write a new chapter in library history. We invite you to join us on the adventure.

Wayne Holt
Interim Director, Pasadena Public Library