Overwhelmed? At a Crossroads?: New Ideas for Prioritizing Work

 

It's easy to get lost when you reach crossroads. 
Having a prioritization strategy will always take
you where you want to go.

Ever find yourself overwhelmed by the work in front of you?  Or sometimes you find yourself at a crossroads about how to leverage scarce resources and time?  We’ve all been there.  Good news though.  Expanding on the ideas that led to the creation of the Small Museum Toolkit, Stacy Klingler and I have developed a four-part prioritization tool that is mindful of the world you work in and points you toward the key areas where you need to concentrate energy, time, and money.

Over the next four weeks on this blog and at the upcoming American Alliance of Museums annual meeting in Baltimore, we’ll lay out this prioritization tool that focuses on these four sectors:

• Developing audiences;
• Building an internal coalition;
• Solidifying  your reputation;
• Assessment and planning.

Also during our AAM session, we’ll share our thoughts on small museum leadership and describe what makes a small museum leader special.  At the end of this session, through group discussion and personal planning, you will leave energized about your work and personally nourished by the collaborative experience we’ve planned for you.

Hope to see you in Baltimore and at our session Small Museum Leadership Considered on Monday, May 20 at 8:45 am.  We’ll also follow up on this topic on Tuesday morning during the Small Museum Table Talks at 7:30 am.  Bring your coffee, your granola bar, whatever your morning elixir, and come chat with us and other small museum enthusiasts who will share what works in small museum settings. The table facilitators really want to hear from you as you reflect on the ideas and strategies you have employed.

Working in museums for nearly 20 years, Cinnamon Catlin-Legutko has been a museum director since 2001. Cinnamon became CEO of the Abbe Museum in Bar Harbor, Maine in 2009. Before that, she was the director of the General Lew Wallace Study & Museum in Crawfordsville, Indiana, where she led the organization to the National Medal for Museum Service.