Objective Lessons: Self-Care for Museum Workers

by Seema Rao

This book uses creative prompts to help museum workers and knowledge workers focus on self-care.

Genres: Museums, Museology

196 pages, Paperback

Published November 6, 2017

About the author

Seema Rao has worked in museums for nearly 20 years at the interstices of visitor experience, education, and technology. She started her career with an interest in medical illustration. While no longer drawing dinosaur bones and bird neurology, she employs her rendering skills to develop books that blend meaning-making, creativity, and visual appeal. This is her third book. Her previous books include Self-Care for #TheResistance and Beyond Defensiveness.

Ms. Rao was born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio where she continues to reside. She loves to draw, eat, and read. But, mostly, she enjoys hanging out with her husband, daughters, and insanely easy-going dog.

Active on social media, you can find her at:

Blog: www.brilliantideastudio.com/blog
Twitter: @artlust
Instagram: @artplayspace

Reviews

[Michelle Harrell · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a two part workbook targeted to museum workers: (1) You and (2) You & Work. Each activity used an object as a metaphor for exploring an aspect of personal or professional life. I spent much longer than I expected to work through the first portion but it coincided with my own mid-life pondering. As an artist, I would sometimes use the activity in the workbook as a catalyst to explore further in my own journal. I couldn't do more than 2-3 activities in one week in the first section. Altogether, it took me 8 months off/ on to work my way through the entire workbook.

I was a bit disappointed in the second section because I had high hopes for using lessons with my team for their own self-care. In some ways, I think this might be more useful for someone considering a career change than self-care for someone interested in staying in their museum. I think it would have been more useful if I had taken it to work with me but some activities (i.e. Here Be Monsters) were too personal that I couldn't risk someone else's eyes on it.

I would be very interested if the author ever considered a second edition in a spiral bound or binder format with some pages with perforated edges that could be pulled aside and done as a worksheet with others. I could see this being a book study done with colleagues with a few edits.

Regardless, it came along at a time when museum workers need all the self-care they can get- thank you!

[Timothy Fay · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm a huge museum fan (mvsevm in Latin), so I enjoyed this book. A chance to see museums and the employees from the "inside." Thanks!