By Stefanie Robel As a postdoc I struggled… Not with the sciency parts of science! But with the endless thankless tasks that come with doing science. The tasks that pile up skyhigh and make us feel like there is never enough time. You know what I am talking about: Lab safety paperwork, administration, maintenance, online…
By Kendra Sewall Like most academics, I balance many jobs and struggle with all of them. I am an associate professor and PI at a mid-level state R01 school, I had 2 kids pre-tenure after using IVF to start my family, and I care for 2 aging parents with complex health conditions. For me, work-life…
In the corridors of academic institutions, amidst the hum of centrifuges and the scribbling of hypotheses on whiteboards, lies a responsibility that often goes unspoken and is sadly sometimes not valued as it should be by our most admired science heroes: ethical leadership. Take for example the recent resignation of Stanford’s president Marc Tessier-Lavigne over…
I’ve heard it countless times from my Six Sigma* Master: “Variance is the enemy.” Well, for the sake of simplicity, let’s call it “variability” today, even though it’s not exactly the same thing. We won’t delve into statistics here; we’ll keep it light for this blog post. Variability refers to unevenness, inconsistency, or deviation from…
Giving feedback is truly an art. It’s not just about following a set of rules or learning specific techniques; there’s much more to it. You have to: I know, these are plenty of “you have tos.” And that is why, when you can provide ongoing feedback without leaving a trail of scorched earth behind, you…
A couple of questions a lot of us research team leaders struggle with is: “What do I do when team members are underperforming?” or a variation thereof: “How do I motivate my team members to be more engaged?” And to those of you who are tired of being the cheerleader–we hear you! And yet, when…
When it comes to addressing performance in team meetings, there are often inherent challenges that both team leaders and team members face. The discomfort surrounding performance discussions can make finding the right words a difficult task. Nobody wants to insult or demotivate their team members. The goal is to help each individual to perform to…
I have individual meetings with my team members once a month and typically include summer students. When I asked the student about her project, I noticed she couldn’t quite articulate it. I had delegated supervising the student, let’s call her Terra, to a postdoc in my lab. I asked the postdoc, Anna, to join our…
In last week’s blog, I discussed the challenges you face as a new PI. These do not only apply to new PIs BTW. They are problems that many faculty face if they haven’t shifted gears. This week, we will share seven fundamental principles that will help you navigate your faculty role. Research informs us that…
You are an excellent researcher. Otherwise you wouldn’t have been given a lot of money, space, and the opportunity to lead a research program. And for having done whatever it took to get you here (likely a lot of research with a lot of trial and error and failure, a lot of persistence and resilience),…