Are you happy my friends in choosing Library Profession?

[raaga]

Dear Friends,

Greetings.....

So many surveys, discussions might have been conducted on this topic on various titles,  to say job satisfaction of LIS professionals region - wise.  Let us keep it aside. We had finished the studies, served at various academic institutions and still looking for good place to groom ourselves. Career advancement becomes like a chasing game. Everyone of us participate in the race. Hope my friends will agree to it. Job security, salary expectations, recognition and status for our designation, cordial working environment, liberty in the place where we work, all includes in the above sentence i feel, " Are you happy in choosing Library profession?" Generally saying, human hearts won't get satisfaction that much easily. Right ?? This is not a survey. Need to know honestly from you all,  Want to know your thoughts, your concern and straight forward replies.

with regards,

Raaga.

[raaga]

Dear Sir,

your reply had made me to read several times. May be this can be the best answer for myself. Always there is a battle inside us for what we want and what we have. Sometimes we compromise ourselves and accept the status without no choice left for us. I really wonder how a person can deny the best offer he got. This shows u had listened to your sayings of heart more than calculating anything else. Keep contribute your rich thoughts and experience to our forum for our concern. 

[Siddu]

Happiness is - "a state of mind". And, as Siddharth sir has pointed out, it is "Relative".  The only debatable point that I can filter through your post is - "does happiness has a strong co-relation with ones profession?" This is something that needs thorough scientific research.

Further more, I feel, the more important issue that one should pause and ponder over is the liberty, the freedom, the dignity of labour, the work culture in ones work place & profession, and, if these are not better, is there a way we can better them?

[umesh sharma]

I m satisfied my job but i m not satisfied status of librarian in our gov. 

[raaga]

Umesh Sir,

Really a straight forward reply. Thank you

[Ajit P]

First of all I thank Ms. Raaga for putting up a heart touching topic and as she said that these sorts of discussions have been conducted on various titles and some debate were also there regarding this topic in the LIS forum. Why you choose Librarianship as your profession? Yes, this was the first assignment given to us when I enrolled myself to Library Science course. I came to know through my colleagues who were studying with me at that time, it is a one year BLIS course and thus they can do some side preparations like IAS competitive exams, job oriented computer courses etc. I wanted to became to MBBS Doctor by profession and thus help the needy patients of our nearby villages and provide them all free medical checkups and in return I may get a satisfaction smile from them. But I was unfortunate and then one day I came to know through a local newspaper about library profession. While reading it I made up my mind to choose library science as my profession where I may even get the satisfaction smile from users after the delivery of my service to them. Coming to Ms Raagas’ topic, As many of us, I was also unfortunate to have some good advice when I was thinking about my move to librarianship. Choosing the right career is a very critical point in anyone’s life. The job that you choose to have will help determine your overall happiness. If you choose a career in a field that is of little or no interest to you, you can easily regret this for a long time. Not only will you regret your decision, to some it can bring them down emotionally rather easily. A person will achieve their maximum happiness by doing something for a living that they truly enjoy and care about. A career is what most people spend a lot of their time building on. Just like a house, the appearance as well as effectiveness is all depending upon what kind of additions that you have made and continue to make? Choosing a career can have a major impact on the way you live as well as feel.

I agree with Mr. Ray, happiness varies from man to man. Your personality has a major effect on what the right type of employment is for you. Happiness is the most important thing that you need to make sure you have at your current job. Good luck in choosing a career that fits you well while letting you achieve inner happiness.

 

And remember, your mind is your private sanctuary; do not allow the negative beliefs of others to occupy it.  Your skin is your barrier; do not allow others to get under it.  Take control of your boundaries and what you allow yourself to absorb from others. Never let someone’s opinion become your reality.  Never sacrifice who you are because someone else has a problem with it.  Love who you are inside and out.  No one else has the power to make you feel small unless you give them that power.  You are the only one who can create your happiness.

The choice is yours.  Choose happiness.

[Babu RT]

Definitely Unhappy. I am working in this profession for the past 10 years. no job security, no job satisfaction, no salary improvement. Each and every college treating as a attender. It is better to commit suicide than studying library science.

[raaga]

Dear Babu sir,

Regret for your state of mind. But sorry to say, never ever have a thought as you had replied.  Can't you gain strength and hope, when you had read the replies from our fellow professionals. Refresh yourself. Sometimes we receive what we dream late, but haven't u heard, " Hardwork never fails" ??

[Siddhartha Shankar Ray]

Dear Babu RT,

I have just gone through your post. ( incidentally I was away from Kolkata for over a week and away from the LIS Links as well) I understand your agony and frustration. Let me unfold some of my sentiments and I am sure that you will feel it. Some 30 + years ago, I went to my native place ( a suburban town in West Bengal) during the Republic Days holidays with Saturday & Sunday as prefix or suffix to inform my parents especially my father the good news that from April I will be going abroad with a full fledged job offering $40K annually as base salary. In those days, the GDP per capita for India was around $318/- but certainly less than $325/- Going abroad with a full service that too in a Developed Country, was not a child's play in those days. I returned from my place on 29th. and on February 01, I was summoned by way of a late night Trunk Call that my father met an Street Accident and hospitalised as I rushed to his bed side, still he was alive for a day& then passed away and  within 72 hours my entire world and entire life took a sharp turn as I could not think of going anywhere leaving my grieving mother and unmarried sister. My mother in extreme solitary just once mumbled  What will you do now?  You can well understand how painful was my decision to stay back ignoring the unimaginable prospective job I had in one of the most renowned Teaching Hospitals in the advanced Countries!! But at that particular period of my life, I had no alternative being the only male member of my family but to stay back, Cancel the air ticket and inform my inability. So Dear Sri Babu, don't loose heart; life never remains the same. Buck up, face the world, face the reality keep all alternatives open, If you have conviction, you will certainly survive.

I too survived.

Later, after a couple of years, as I assembled my family and in an early morning as I set my feet first at the JFK airport, I taken out an old and out dated Bank Draft Drawn in favour of my departed father from the inside pocket of my shirt and touched the Bank draft in US land to make both mine & my father's dreams come true and successfully completed a FULL CIRCLE!!

My grieving mother mumbled what will you do now?.............. After a couple years without uttering a single vocal words, I did what I intended to do a couple of years ago!

I am confident that you as a young person (you are in the profession for just a decade, as you have mentioned) there is a vast world open before you. Be steady and you will certainly conquer.

Sincerely,

Siddhartha S. Ray, Calcutta

[Dr.S.Kannan]

If I say, "I am very happy", 100% I am not true. It may be for answering in the interview, saying I am of service minded person, bla bla bla...In practice, Librarians are not happy except a few people those are working in government offices under regular pay scale. I mean, salary is one of the key factor in this aspect. Next status, leave and other factors will make the librarian to be happy.

[Md. Zubair Ahmad]

Dear Sir/Madam

As a professional, yes, I feel proud to be a library professional, because I serve myself to satisfy and make them happy as our client i.e. Students, Teachers and Research Scholars or users of my Library. But other hand it is true that the Library profession have lost its importance in day by day in this era. We lost our importance in value of our jobs, salary, promotion and also in the representation to the Higher Authority. We have higher qualification other than other field, but we have not a chance to promote to next grade like other fields. We have less and less salary day by day because of our representation to the Government or Higher Authority is so poor. No Association or Committee represent to the library profession at present. The selected member of Association or Committee have not interested in the development of library profession only they want to be a member of the body and enjoy with the post. Nothing is doing for the betterment of the library profession.  In our country lot of Association National/State level but they are not interested to work for the development of library profession. There is no better opportunity in this profession. Vacancies is so less and qualified person is more and more. Our representation with the Government National/State is also so poor. Salary is going lower and lower day by day. So, I am not satisfy with my profession. One think kept in my mind that I do not advise in my family members or friends to join in this profession. I don’t know I am right or wrong but I have a clear filling about the library profession. “Zindagi me Self Satisfaction hi sab kuch nahi hota Zinda rahne ke liye or bhi chijon ke jaroorat ho ti hai”

With regards

Md. Zubair Ahmad

[Priti sharma]

Definitely Unhappy. I am working in this profession for the past 5 years. no job security, no job satisfaction, no salary improvement and no value of librarian. Each and every college treating as a attendent.there are various issues related to our profession……..

1. Exploitation in private sector

2.Unemployment

3.No status of Librarian

 

[VAITHIYANATHAN]

hello k...

i am very very happy...because i switch to share market business and get more money and social supports.

when i was quit from librarian job permanently after that i feel my freedom happiness and self-respect.

here after i need not bend my back in respect of idiotic management gundas...

i learn share market business in my home for 2 months and enroll myself a D.P.

now i earn good number of amounts. In simple words i earned one month of librarian salary in a two week.

so unsatisfied librarians...be careful of this job....