Save Money, Use the Library

Did you know that you could save $50 or more a month by using your local, public library? Avid readers get a lot of benefits from obtaining free, accessible books, office space, resources, and services. Libraries are a public service that is designed to make their resources as affordable as possible for everyone. Whether you’re trying to decrease your spending, living through financial insecurity, are a student, or simply want to explore ways to bolster your savings your local library can help! Here are all the reasons why libraries are a fantastic way to save money.

New Fitness Goals? Join the Library Instead of the Gym

With the new year comes new goals for health and fitness. The treadmills and ellipticals at the local gyms will start to fill up as new and old members alike summon fresh motivation from their New Year’s resolutions. While you may be tempted to sport a brand spanking new membership at your local gym, you might want to think twice before shelling out your hard-earned cash for sign-up fees and monthly membership dues.

Reading is Self-Care

Reading can be seen as a “lonely,” “academic,” and “lazy” hobby. Also, some people understandably feel bitter about reading after being forced to analyze certain books in school. Reading is a completely normal and healthy way to relieve stress and exercise your brain. It invokes creativity and intense feelings of empathy that force your brain to literally “escape.” During a global pandemic, being able to temporarily escape into a novel may be more important than ever. Here are all the reasons why reading is a valid form of self-care.  

Trevor Noah and Levar Burton Talk About Book Banning

If missed this week's Daily Show with Trevor Noah, you missed out on seeing Levar Burton and Trevor Noah talking about the new culture war: Book Banning.

10 Ways You Can Show Your Favorite Library Some Love

With Valentine’s Day on our radar, we are all looking forward to finding ways to show those we care about some love. We’re sure to remember our significant other, our family members, or a group of our best pals, but have you ever thought about showing your local library some love? These essential institutions are incredible places that play many different types of roles for people in the community. Library staff works tirelessly to educate, support, and guide patrons that walk through the door without asking for recognition. However, chocolates and flowers aren’t the way to go (although, feel free to gift some to your favorite library staff members if you’d like!) Instead, there are numerous other ways to show your favorite library some love for. We’ll share ten of our favorites.

What Do People Love About Libraries?

Libraries are much more than the books shelved on bookcases. While libraries are created with common purposes, the role they end up taking on depends on their community setting. A Reddit user recently shared concerns about an encounter with televisions in the library. Reddit users have used this post as an online discussion opportunity to point out the cool ideas that libraries embrace.

Stop Scrolling, Start Reading

We all started the new year with a list of resolutions. For some, it involves getting back to their childhood joy of reading. For others, it is spending less time on their phones. However, as the saying goes- why not both? Reading is a great habit to pick up for those that are wanting to add a session of destressing to their day and social media can become an unhealthy habit in excess. By actively choosing to replace social media with books, we create a simple way to tackle our goals and achieve two objectives at once.

It Is Time to Make Time to Take Your Child to the Library

Three important goals that many parents have: spending quality time with their children, helping them to be independent and socially fluent, and building their love for reading. These goals are easily accomplished by taking your child to the library. There is no better time to get into this habit. There are plenty of benefits to childhood library trips including exposing your child to endless resources, broadening their perspectives, allowing them to strengthen their social skills, preparing them for a school setting, teaching them to value reading and learning, and so much more. Visits to the library can make a lasting impression on a child’s life and impact them in ways you can’t even predict. Not convinced? Let’s dive into all of the benefits.

Libraries Serve Homeless and Low-Income Users

Do you know that more than half a million Americans go homeless on any given night and that this represents 0.2% of the U.S. population? Or that, of these people, 65% are in shelters while 35% remain on the streets? If you want to know more about this “hidden” crisis in the U.S., ask someone who works at a public library.

Libraries: the Ultimate Entrepreneurship Accelerator

An entrepreneur walks into their co-working space. They nod to the person behind the main desk, pull up to an open spot, and start their workday. Their office offers a quiet space to work, classes for entrepreneurs, free or discounted printing and faxing and scanning, free wifi, and experts on hand to help answer questions on where to find local resources for their business. Sound like a dream workspace? It’s the norm for a lot of entrepreneurs all across the country who work out of their local public libraries. Libraries? Yes, Libraries.