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Nice question! I used to vacillate but now I think . 1. Say a. "I'm a librarian!" 2. Add a tone of pride and self-esteem 3. Smile 4. Then tell them what you - and other librarians - really do ... they're always impressed It usually opens up conversations about "books v t'Internet" and you can use this as a springboard to tell them about the amazing worldwide reach of every librarian and library support staff, how you help people, about the many technologies we use, the communities of learners who come into our places . readers, children who love bookstart and the summer reading challenge, the student, researchers, lecturers, pensioners, MP's and Lords, housebound and blind people, the prison inmates, the new communities, the entrepreneurs, jobseekers, about, music libraries, choral sets, poetry libraries, Inspire, Enquire, CILIP and the Women's Institute, the American Library Association's huge conferences, Voices for the Library, Librarycamps, Libraries Change Lives, Carnegie and Greenaway awards, cycling for libraries, the British Library, Image libraries, online libraries, Getty and BBC libraries, hospital, mobile, llama and elephant libraries, library architecture, the ancient greeks and remember to mention the parliamentary libraries (where somehow, they even manage without volunteers) ...... You can spend a very pleasant hour with people. John John Dolan OBE, BA, Dip Lib, MCLIP E. [log in to unmask] Tw @johnrdolan T. 0121 476 4258 M. 07508 204200 -----Original Message----- From: lis-pub-libs: UK Public Libraries [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Sarah Jenkin Sent: 08 August 2011 09:25 To: [log in to unmask] Subject: Alternative job description - Librarian Hello there, I need your advice. When someone asks you what job you do, what do you tell them? Do you say you're a librarian, or do you use an alternative title? The reason I ask is because I keep on being asked to give "help" with fines, i.e. make them dissapear, and it's become noticably more frequent. So, to avoid that situation I'd like to think of an alternative job description. Any ideas? Thank you