Conferences are fabulous: a concentration of ideas and discoveries and inspiration and the very people who are creating your field. Don’t treat a conference like a textbook. This is the time to put yourself out there and connect with the people-science nexus – human to human.

Deciding to go
• Ask your advisor for the names of conferences you should consider.
• Ideally submit an abstract and present. (This requires planning 6 months to a year ahead).
• If a the travel cost/burden is low, just go.
• Seek funds from your advisor, department, or university. Funds are often reserved for presenters, but it doesn’t hurt to ask.

Before the conference
• Rest up. Really.
• Find out who is going from inside your network. Especially look for buddies (for comfort) and an advisor or instructor (for introducing you to others).
• Research the program. You may be downloading an app or searching a pdf, but take full advantage of the technology to search keywords of your interests and the authors that you are following.
• Realize that a conference program is a concentrated assembly of the people who are currently active in a field. Pay attention to the authors who are coming up again and again. Read the abstracts as a preview of work that may be published in the near future.
• Reach out to the people doing the work that inspires you. Consult with your advisor to partner in this. But don’t be afraid to cold-email anyone with an invite for coffee or meeting during a break. Enthusiasm about someone’s work, no matter their rank, can really open doors. (See the blog post on informational interviews for tips here).
• Mark up your calendar with the sessions you want to attend (making sure to include room/location information).
• Make plans for dinners with others. Ask your buddies/advisor what their plans are. Invite someone just outside your inner circle and be open to being included in a bigger group. Avoid having a dinner that just includes only your close buddies who are all graduate students, because conference dinners are a super-important avenue for meeting new colleagues.
• If there are “fun” events at your conference (a run, museum trip, outing, dinner, etc), sign up, especially if you don’t have other plans to connect over dinners etc.

During the conference
• Up and at em – attend events early to late.
• Nudge yourself out of a mindset that you are a lowly student or an outsider. You have been admitted to a doctoral program and you have a lot to give to this field. You will be sought after for your ability to work hard and bring new perspective. Where you are right now is just fine. Hold your head high and say hello and shake some hands.
• If you don’t yet have dinner plans, now is the time to say hello to those that you are meeting and ask if they have dinner plans. Sometimes a closed group may be meeting with a specific purpose, so don’t be offended if you encounter this. More frequently you will encounter people that are open to folding you into a group, because they understand what it is like to be new to a field.
• At oral presentations – head up front at the end and speak with a presenter that interests you. Introduce yourself and engage about the content, such as saying what you appreciated, or asking a follow-up question.
• At poster presentations – ask the presenter to explain the poster to you. Introduce yourself.
• You may have an opportunity to speak with someone that you don’t normally have an opportunity to speak with about the science: an expert, potential collaborator, etc, at a time that is during a presentation you planned to go to. Opt for the chat and skip the presentation, or go late.

After the conference
• Follow up on any leads you had about interesting papers or methods. Get organized by fleshing out your notes and bringing the citations into your library.
• Spend a few minutes simply writing. Write down new ideas, new approaches, or personal reflections on how this recent immersion will help you make the world a better place.
• Send emails to the people you met, thanking them.

So many things have to come together for a successful dissertation project.

The process of many great projects involves first considering, and letting go of, the projects that aren’t quite ready or worth it. The skill of moving on, however, requires humility and yes, practice.

I was so excited when, as a graduate student, I had a meeting with a scientist who could provide access to a dataset I needed for my planned dissertation project. I knew it was going to be hard work. But I was brimming with enthusiasm and thought nothing of the many barriers she mentioned. I was going to make it work!

So I was a caught a bit off guard when my advisor then firmly discouraged me from pursuing the idea. She was grasping the situation (and conversation) more clearly than me, and was protecting me from what would have likely been a wild goose chase for data access which would have wasted a lot of time and gone nowhere. Letting go of my first dissertation project was painful, but necessary.

Listen to the advice of those who can see the bigger picture and understand the value of protecting your time.

Practice this true listening. Practice letting go and saying no. And practice using the circular file. (Google it). 🙂

Your time is THE most valuable resource that you have – even now, as a graduate student.

With gratitude to J.D.

Don’t buy into the image of the isolated student in the library (or laboratory), head down, spotlight on the book (or test tube, or computer), toiling long hours, alone. You will need to put in some of that time, of course, but you will have greater impact if you remember to lift your head up. You are becoming a part of the community of science. Connect person to person, face to face, and voice to voice. You will be amazed by how much knowledge, perspective, and insight is freely available by asking. You just might be given an insider tip, a leg up, or find a magical new idea emerging from synergy with another. People do science, collectively.

Spark connections by initiating informational interviews. An informational interview is a brief conversation to learn about a person’s current work and career path, without any further expectation.

Prepare by polishing up your CV.

Google “informational interview” and get tips on the etiquette. Prepare questions. Much online information pertains to corporate culture; realize that your conversation might center more on learning a research area rather than a target workplace. But do prepare questions about career path, because you will likely receive some great advice (and because people enjoy sharing their personal insights here).

Identify people to interview. Ask your advisor. Notice authors that are coming up a lot in the publications you are reading. Include your instructors and faculty members in your department, because without a scheduled conversation, you might not have the opportunity to discuss their research niche or career path.

Send a brief email with your CV attached, with a request, such as:

“Dear XXX,

I am a doctoral student working with (advisor) at (university) with a lot of interest in your work on (research area) (CV attached). If your schedule allows, I’d appreciate the chance for a brief (15 min) call (or meeting, if person is local) for an informational interview about your research and career path, at your convenience. I am widely available (list some big chunks of time about 2-3 weeks out).

(Don’t forget to attach your CV and include a signature block at the end of your email with contact information and links to any professional websites about you/your work).
“

Always ask who else to contact, and then follow up. Do informational interviews when you are refining a research area in the early years of doctoral training, as you are searching for a post-doc or faculty position, if you are shifting direction, and whenever you want to grow your network.

Whether your end goal is academia, or not, your future work will certainly involve writing. Mastering compelling and clear writing will not only aid your success, but will be a major way that you leave your mark on the world. Important writing is at times formal – grants and publications – but includes all of your non-verbal words, to include your emails.

Diagnose your writing skills and improve them, continuously. Look for didactic courses, books, and tools to improve your writing, and study. Learn to write as you read, by noticing when writing rocks your world and when not, and determining why. Follow models, by dissecting a good publication for style and outline components. Don’t shy away from learning from quality lay/media writing, as this can help de-stuff-ify and streamline your writing. Find collaborators, whether an advisor, fellow student, or others, who have the time and courage to take your writing apart. Pay close attention to how they improve your writing. Do the same for them.

Develop a warning bell for yourself to indicate when your thinking isn’t clear. It often isn’t the writing that is difficult, but the thinking. Muddled thoughts lead to muddy writing. Do your work to get clarity.

Most importantly, write. Write down every research idea you have in the form of specific aims. Write down summaries of what you read. Write syntheses of bodies of literature. Write class papers. Look for opportunities to be a co-author on publications. Write up the methods of research that you are doing. Practice, diagnose, improve, and then do it all over again, because writing is one of the many skills that responds to practice.

Write.

The word “truth” may not often be used in research. But make no mistake – it is out there. And it is our job to uncover and explain it, whatever our field.

There is a parable about blind folks each describing a large object based on how it feels to them. One describes a tree trunk (leg), one a spear (tusk), one a fan (ear), and so on, none realizing that indeed they are touching an elephant.

As academics, we are similarly blind. Our methods, no matter their sophistication, are imperfect, and will only be showing us fragmented and flawed conclusions filtered through our human perception. This does not mean that the elephant – the true reality that we attempt to study – does not exist. Our work and our impact will be at its best when we aim for truth, while being continually aware of (and communicating clearly about) the distinction between our findings and truth.

(With gratitude to C.P.)

You can manage how your body processes “nerves” before giving a presentation, interviewing, confronting colleagues or fellow students, and other scary encounters. By managing your biophysical state, you will both feel better during the situation, and will also optimize how others perceive you. (Think about how uncomfortable it is to be around someone that is noticeably nervous.) Of course be prepared, practice, and anticipate how the encounter may go; be rested, eat, and be the “right” level of caffeinated. But also allow time for a specific technique.

(What follows may strike you as silly. But 1 – The only downside is 5 minutes of your time. 2 – Even if this works by placebo, a placebo effect is real. 3 – You know there is a connection between your body and brain, right? 4 – I am not punking you. 5 – Science. Well, maybe. See link to TED talk below about this technique).

Find a private place 5 or 10 minutes prior to the thing. A bathroom stall works great. Set your timer for 3 minutes. (Really). Start the timer and put yourself into a “power pose”. Take up as much space as you can, by planting your feet wide and reaching upward. Or put your hands on your hips. Stand up tall and smile. Look into a mirror and imagine yourself doing the scary thing. Now breathe and notice for at least 3 minutes. It will feel like a long time. For me, my heart will initially race, but then it calms down, and I am suffused with a feeling of confident readiness with a touch of humor/lightness. Now go rock the thing.

Credit to Amy Cuddy
Ted Talk about Power Poses

There is a type of reading that lets the words fall like gentle rain into your brain. Ahhhh – so soothing – zzzzzz. Actually, I’m more likely to be reviewing my to-do list or planning my next blog post when reading passively. Brains love to think, but often have “minds of their own”. The good news is that they respond to direction. Give direction while reading to fully engage your brain’s power. Using a highlighter or underlining is a step in the right direction, because it is giving your brain questions like – What is most important? What is new to me? What is interesting? You can do even better. You’ll get the most out of reading when you are crystal clear on your reading purpose. Don’t even bother to read unless you pick a purpose and give your brain a question. Here are some to try: Why did the authors use that study design (or statistical model)? What is another explanation for the results? How is this the same (or different) from what I already know? What does that word mean? (Look it up). Why did my instructor assign this? Meta-questions include: Why is this writing compelling, or clunky? What type of article or book is this? Who are these authors and what else have they written? When reading for courses, your instructor may have given you reading questions. Of course use them! When reading a primary journal article, super-engaged reading can occur if you use an article critique worksheet with step by step questions. Email me and I’ll send you one – really. The good news is that during the course of your graduate training you will be moving from a phase when others select your reading (courses) to when you pick them already with a purpose in mind (dissertation). You will also become more familiar with the types of questions you will need to ask, where in an article to find the answers, and so many more facets of effective reading. For now, pick one or two good questions before reading. Write down your questions, and your answers – on the reading or in a reading notebook. Sounds like work, right? You betcha. Get to it!

In this blog I will introduce many “tools of the trade” for graduate school and beyond. Let me start by reminding you of the tool that is the most astounding, amazing, and masterful of all, the tool that is capable of pursuing your wildest dreams and making the world a better place – your mind. No computer, no course, no book, comes anywhere close. At a minimum, you must support it by caring for its home – your body. (You already know how.) But do more. Be open to new ways to manage your thinking, be aware, minimize inner drama, cultivate ease, and truly care for your mind. My goal is that this blog provides some guide posts. Benefits of mind care are enormous. You are capable. You are worth it.

Others have written about overuse and gender dynamics around saying “sorry”. Here I encourage you to use this simple word as a case study to up your confidence and professional communication.

Start with awareness. If you find yourself saying “sorry” frequently, be curious about the situations and reasons. Are you apologizing for the universe (traffic) or for being human (illness)? Remember – we want you here, and are not expecting super-human perfection.

Alternately, are you apologizing again and again for something that you could correct? What is stopping you from making the needed change?

Look for situations where you can make a simple verbal shift toward “thank you”. Instead of “Sorry I’m late”, try “Thank you for waiting for me and I understand that our meeting will still need to end on time.” Instead of “I’m sorry I forgot to add in those citations”, try “Thank you for still being willing to work with me on this project. I’ll take care of this right away and will check more carefully next time”. Shifting the conversation to your gratitude, and taking responsibility for correction, is much more likely to strengthen your relationships with others than a pat “sorry”.

And when you have the stomach lurch signaling a true need for relationship repair, say your “sorry” slowly, with meaning, as a promise not to repeat the harm.

Mistakes happen. It’s how you move forward that matters. A pro-active, relationship-preserving attitude and taking responsibility for making right is acceptable everywhere.

A Simplified Hierarchy

Dean
Department Chair
Faculty
(Full) Professor
Associate Professor (often with tenure)
Assistant Professor
(Middle area with terms like Research Scientist or Instructor)
Trainees
Post-Doc
Doctoral Student
Master’s Student
Undergraduate Student

Many institutions have faculty tracks that run alongside the typical tenure-track, such as Research Faculty (for whom teaching expectations are lower and grant funding higher) or Clinical Faculty (who perform clinical duties). These tracks may also have ranks such as Professor, Associate, and Assistant. Whether appropriate or not, Research Faculty positions tend to have less status than Tenure Track.

Staff members might function within the hierarchy. An example is a lab tech who works under a faculty member and performs at the level of a doctoral student. Other staff members, such as graduate program managers, exist outside of the hierarchy, with the good ones having sway even over full professors.

Rail against this hierarchy if you want, but it does serve some purposes and it’s best to know about it. It provides information about where someone is in their career trajectory. Someone “above you” in the hierarchy might be more able to provide advice and mentorship, someone at a similar level is often a great collaborator, and someone “below you” might benefit from introductions to others. The hierarchy also provides guidelines on behavior, as follows. Deference and assistance should be directed upward in the hierarchy, while support and guidance should be directed downward. For example, a master’s student should not dictate the time or place of a meeting with a faculty member, but instead should take on more travel time or inconvenience burden. The faculty member should then be forthcoming with advice and support toward the student, and should provide ample opportunity for participation and growth. This exchange could also be seen where a post-doctoral fellow mentors an undergraduate student in learning the basics of an area of research, with the undergraduate being the person to come in on weekends to keep experiments running.

The academic hierarchy does not dictate who is correct or in error or who may have great ideas. An undergraduate may have a striking idea. A full professor may make a mistake (and should admit doing so). Ideally, respectful discourse and collegiality will exist across all levels of the academic hierarchy. Similarly, there should be no wall of privilege, but instead full access to knowledge, where the savvy and prepared undergraduate may expect an email response back from a full professor. Individuals at a higher level are in no way “better than” those lower, and hazing or disrespect have no place.

In truth, individuals and institutions will be at various stages of embracing this kind and supportive hierarchy. Look for those that allow the support to flow in both directions to lift everyone up, and when it is your turn, make it so.