At the end of the records lifecycle for records that are deemed permanent is being sent to the archives. There is a soft spot in my heart for archives that is what got me interested in the information management field, even though I learned the hard way that I am not cut out for doing that work 40 hours a week. What is fascinating about archives is you never know what you will find there, but the one thing that is guaranteed is that the information is of historical and lasting value, or else no one would care to keep it forever.
Here is a prime example of marketing materials of historical value found at the National Archives on “Wartime Food Campaings – National Nutrition Program.”
The campaign set in 1942 was centered on two small studies in 1940 showing that due to deficiency in Vitamin B1 (Thiamine) people were becoming apathetic and sluggish. To up morale for the coming war Vitamin Donuts were created with B1 by the Doughnut Corporation of America.
I love the third poster that says: “Down the years, the donut has remained the tradition symbol of good fellowship, friendliness and good humor…The donut spells equal enjoyment to newsboy as well as bank president. It is truly a token of the American Way-the Democratic Way.”
If your project is running behind schedule and you need to motivate your staff, bring donuts! If you work with a group of information hoarders who don’t want to manage their records or destroy files that are up for disposition, bring donuts! No matter your information management hurdle, bring donuts!
