Some of the most powerful advocacy comes from showing what you’re doing, not just talking about it.

It’s natural for someone to believe more what they experience for themselves, than what they are told.

They’ll also remember it better!

This is as true for people in positions of power as for anyone else. Moreover, it’s possible that they haven’t visited a library in years.

So for our 38^th 10-Minute Library Advocate exercise, send an invitation to visit your library!

Find someone you want to influence (see exercise #6!), and then write an invitation that gets them interested. Think about what they might want to see or say, and adapt to this (see our exercise #24!). Could there be a media opportunity for them?

Clearly the visit – and its preparation – will take more than 10 minutes, but the invitation doesn’t need to be long.  Indeed, something shorter may indeed have more power!

Good luck!

See the introduction and previous posts in our 10-Minute Library Advocate series and join the discussion in social media using the #EveryLibrarianAnAdvocate hashtag!

One way of advocating successfully is to become familiar with key decision-makers or influencers.

If you have a close connection, it is easier to share your arguments.

But how to build this connection up when you first come across them.

A good way to build familiarity is to avoid awkward questions about who they are by being able to address them immediately by their name.

Politicians at least tend to appreciate when people know who they are from the first moment. But this isn’t always easy in a public meeting.

So for our 37^th 10-Minute Library Advocate exercise, memorise some names and faces.

If you know you might see them at a meeting, look them up online, and see if there are images available of them.

Try to remember them so that if you do end up meeting them, you can say hello immediately, and get straight into making your arguments!

Good luck!

See the introduction and previous posts in our 10-Minute Library Advocate series and join the discussion in social media using the #EveryLibrarianAnAdvocate hashtag!

Sometimes in advocacy, it’s not what you say, but how you say it.

Even the best arguments and the strongest evidence still need to be presented well in order to have an impact.

Sometimes this is a question of the vocabulary you use.

Sometimes it’s about your tone, or how fast you are speaking.

So for our 35^th 10-Minute Library Advocate Exercise, get your delivery right!

Bear in mind that you are a little like an actor, who adapts how they speak and act to have a greater effect.

For example, make sure you’re not using library jargon that others may not understand.

Be sure to speak clearly, keep your sentences short, and focus on the message you want to send.

And of course smile and be as warm as appropriate – it’ll make people think more positively about your message!

Good luck!

See the introduction and previous posts in our 10-Minute Library Advocate series and join the discussion in social media using the #EveryLibrarianAnAdvocate hashtag!

Advocacy shouldn’t just be about talking.

For people who have lots of meetings, it may even be difficult to remember what happened in one particular conversation.

So you need a way of giving the person you are talking to a way of remembering you, and your message.

You need both to make your meeting different, as well as give them a reminder, so that you can follow up.

So for our 33rd 10-Minute Library Advocate exercise, bring a prop or support.

This can be something simple like a photo or a postcard. If you have a brochure or something more detailed, this is even better.

Even a souvenir can help, as long as it has the name of your library or organisation on it, or some reminder of your meeting.

Not only does this add something to your presentation, but also, when your interlocutor is emptying their bag or jacket at the end of the day or week, they will see it and think of libraries.

Good luck!

See the introduction and previous posts in our 10-Minute Library Advocate series and join the discussion in social media using the #EveryLibrarianAnAdvocate hashtag!