Collaboration
I believe that respectful collaboration is essential to success - especially for a public institution like the Lynnfield Public Library.
I recognize that I’ll never have all the answers - nobody does. In my professional career as a project manager, team lead, and user experience designer, I had to work to build consensus and gain approval on projects. This involved building trusted relationships with multiple stakeholders, team members, and clients who had different levels of experience and skill.
As a Trustee, I’d do my best to respectfully collaborate with other Trustees, Library staff, Town officials, and Library patrons to manage the experience of using the Lynnfield Library.
Communication
As a former project manager, user experience designer, and English major, I pride myself in clear and direct communication. I believe that useful and relevant information should be shared whenever possible, so that people know what's going on and can make informed decisions.
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I also believe that elected Library Trustees should be as transparent as possible with information - especially with major decisions related to the Library. This doesn’t mean that every Lynnfield resident needs to be involved with every decision related to the Library, or that personnel discussions shouldn’t be covered by an executive session. But it DOES mean that major decisions related to the library should be discussed and documented in open meetings, and that it’s always clear who signed off on each decision.
I believe in being as specific as possible in order to remove ambiguity and confusion. When I was a project manager, I could always tell if a project was getting off track when people were unable to give specific answers about their work. Ambiguous answers allow uncertainty to creep in, potentially causing anxiety and distrust among anyone involved with the project. When working on a project, I strive to get the details as quickly as possible so I can communicate them to the rest of the team and any stakeholders or decision makers.
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I think it’s okay to say “I don’t know” or “I need to follow up with you on that,” as long as people proactively follow up with new information when it’s available. In my professional career I learned the importance of following up with accurate information (even when it was information that people didn’t want to hear) to build trust within my team and with clients.
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As a Trustee, I would use my communication skills to provide accurate and timely information related to the Library to the public, to other Trustees, and to other elected and appointed officials in town.
Optimism
I’m a big believer in the saying “There are no problems, only opportunities.” I think it helps to take an optimistic view on issues and to try and find solutions wherever possible.
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This doesn’t mean I believe in unfounded optimism. No amount of positive thinking can change the fact that the library building isn't ADA compliant. But I do think that reframing problems as potential opportunities is helpful - it helps people find solutions rather than live with problems.
Last year, I became more heavily involved in the Lynnfield Library Building Project, and worked with other library supporters to educate the Lynnfield community about the project. In researching the project I learned more about the dedicated Library staff that serve the public every day, the limitations of the current Library building, and some of the possibilities for the future of the Lynnfield Library.
The beloved Lynnfield Library is “more than books” - it’s a free, public, non-retail, inclusive center for the Lynnfield community, regardless of its location.
If elected as Trustee, I’ll work with my fellow Trustees to seek immediate and long-term improvements to the Lynnfield Library in order to help the Library realize its potential as a “safe, welcoming and inclusive cultural center where people will gather and share ideas, interests and knowledge.