A lot of my research and travel over the last few years has been made possible by some sort of grant, but I have also made several costly mistakes along the way—lost receipts and frantic last-minute form submissions. These mistakes could have been avoided if I had approached my grant like an archivist.

When processing a new archival collection, archivists have to use their experience and knowledge to predict the future. They anticipate the preservation needs of the materials as well as the needs of researchers, with the goal of keeping the collection safe and accessible. In addition, archivists habitually document their work as they go, both for themselves and for the future. Not only does it make processing easier, it also generates a ton of metadata, which researchers and other archivists might find useful.

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