Recovering Academic

How do you find your happy? Do you have to make big changes? Or can small changes be enough? In this episode, we talk about figuring out what will make us happy. Sometimes these involve big changes (like moving) and sometimes small changes (like buying a new dish rack). There's a lot of emphasis on making decisions that are right for your career or will open up opportunities for a new career. However, in the end, we're human. We need to consider our lives and overall happiness. Maybe Humans Are Like Orchids? However, sometimes the grass isn't always greener—but how can you tell that before you take the leap? As academics, we're trained to always look for something more. Keep going to that next step. We're trained to never be satisfied. But maybe that next step won't make you happy. How do you know if you should keep going? Humans could be like orchids. They're finicky plants that have strict living conditions and their seeds must have certain types of fungus to grow. So, we all need to find our fungus to fl

In this episode, we're joined by Dr. Sara Langworthy of, well, just about everything. Team: Do All The Things! Sara is an author, consultant, speaker and YouTuber with a degree in Developmental Psychology. In 2013, she co-founded an organizational advancement and evaluation consulting group, The Exchange Loop, LLC to use her research skills to benefit organizations looking to grow their work. In 2015, to hone her science communication skills, she wrote an award-winning book, Bridging the Relationship Gap (www.drlangworthy.com/book), which addresses how educators can build resilience with children who experience stress and adversity in early life. During that year she also started a YouTube channel, Developmental Enthusiast, where she creates videos on a variety of subjects and research on human development across the lifespan. In early 2017, Sara took the leap into self-employment full time and now does "all the things." You can find out more about Sara at www.drlangworthy.com. Mentioned in This Episode Scien

In this end-of-the year episode each one of us reflect about our recovering 2017 year and come up with resolutions for the 2018. Thank you so much for listening to our podcast! It is really rewarding for us to feel that we're able to help you cope with your transition in some way. You are constantly transitioning. Life is about change. And change can be good. - @LadyScientist   Transition is a constant in everyone's life and no job is really forever. - @IHStreet   Don't be too hard on yourself. We can always work more, and be better. But there must be room for rest and fun without guilt. - @Doctor_PMS   We wish you all Happy Holidays and a terrific 2018!

In this week's episode, we're discussing burnout and transitioning. We all think that once we've made our decision that all our problems will be solved. We'll take all that energy we spent on fretting over leaving and put it into side projects. But it seems like it rarely works out that way... Managing Your Energy Even if you don't move locations (like Doctor_PMS and Amanda), you still have to adjust to your new situation. If you move (like Ian), then you have this extra layer of fatigue on top of adapting to a new job. Even just getting used to sitting in front of a computer all day can be exhausting. – @IHStreet You have decisions to make about prioritizing your work, learning about a new job, and finding out where to find the best coffee in a new city! If you work from home, then that can present another set of issues. From Doctor_PMS who dealt with distractions to Amanda who didn't have enough distractions, you have to work on enforcing limits. I had a hard time enforcing boundaries. Because there's alway

Out of the gray zone. We’re joined by Chall (@challdreams) who left academia behind as a postdoc and currently a Project Coordinator in pediatric cancer via a job in pharma quality control science. Getting out of the Gray Zone We discuss characteristics PhDs have that might lend them or not to careers beyond the bench. Academia is ostensibly creative and measurements do matter, but in pharma or other fields, precision and accuracy of claims made about products matter and quality testing has to occur. Those cannot be in a gray zone, where in academia, that gray zone may be a hint of something. Similarly, in academia it can be hard to know what your skills are and what value you have. Beyond academia, it becomes necessary to know and assert what you know and the value you bring to a team Chall talks about her career transitions, realizing that any hobbies she had as a postdoc fell away, only to be regained after leaving academia,  being professionally happier, and realizing her value and skills. Having a sen

In today's episode, we talk with Jennifer Polk of PhD to Life. She's a life coach and entrepreneur and has a PhD in History. Everyone Feels This Way Sometimes We ask Jen about her transition out of academia and into entrepreneur life. She shares with us the high and low points of her transition—and how many of her clients feel (or felt) the same. She discusses her many business ventures. In addition to life coaching in her PhD to Life business, she also runs Self-Employed PhD (a community for other PhD entrepreneurs) and Beyond the Professoriate (a community that she runs with her business partner, Maren Woods, that focuses on professional development for alternative careers).   Mentioned in This Episode From PhD to Life - Jen's life coaching business Self-Employed PhD - Community for Self-Employed PhDs (full time or part time!) Beyond the Professoriate Community - Community that focuses on professional development for alternative careers S1E10: Asking For Help - Recovering Academic episode where we discu

You always hear about transferable skills—and how PhDs have them. But how do you identify them? How do you know what skills to develop? In this episode, we discuss how you can identify them and how to develop them. What's Your Super Power? All of us have a tendency to discount things that we find easy. Is it easy for you to pick out grammatical errors? Is it easy for you to develop your own voice in writing? Is it easy for you to connect with anyone? All of those (and many more!) are skills that are transferable. Also, skills are environment dependent. Skills that you may have developed outside of your current career might be applicable in your next career.   Mentioned in This Episode* The Turnaround with Jesse Thorn: Ira Glass – Discussion of identifying skills Synesthesia – Super powers The Greatest General Ever – You have to be in the proper setting to fully use your skills. Do you know what’s your dream job? Try the Flower Exercise! – Doctor PMS's blog about the Flower Exercise What Color is Your Pa

This week we interview (interrogate?) Ian about his recent transition outside of academia. The Many Hats that Ian Wears... Ian shares his venture outside of academia in which he fills a bunch of roles. His current day job is a lab manager with a company that specializes in helping scientists procure lab reagents and equipment. This might seem like an unusual job for an introvert, like Ian, but he explains how it actually can suit him. He also writes for his science blog, other websites, and a magazine. On top of that, he is a volunteer associate editor for the POSTDOCket, the monthly newsletter for the National Postdoctoral Association. During his interview, Ian talks about the ups and downs of his transition _and_ if he's happier now. Mentioned in This Episode Workflowy – A bullet point-based to-do web app The Quiet Branches – Ian's Science Blog (we encourage everyone to check it out!) The Postdoc Path: Understanding the Value of a Postdoc Before You Commit – Article by Ian Street and Irina Tiper POSTDOC

In this week's episode, Ian and Amanda interview Cleyde to get the in-depth story of her experience as a recovering academic. Cleyde's Advice: Have a Plan Photo by: Steven Johnson Cleyde talks about her reasons for leaving academia, including her relationship with academia. She also talks about what her goals are for her career. We also briefly discuss if it's possible to control your productivity—that is to avoid having 100 publications in one year and only one the next. Cleyde also brings up a very important point about how your job needs to fit your personality and how your work environment can affect you. Her best advice? Have a plan before leaving if you can. If you know that you want to leave academia (or are even just considering the possibility), start planning as soon as you can. This allows you to find out all the options (there are a lot!) for PhDs and former academics. Mentioned in This Episode The Year Of Albert Einstein: His discoveries in 1905 would forever change our understanding of the uni

This season we will interview other recovering academics, so it's only fair that we turn the mic on ourselves first. In this episode, Amanda is interviewed by Ian and Cleyde. Revelations in Amanda's Career... She talks about the realization that money can be exchanged for goods and services, making the leap into self-employment,  and the difficulty in overcoming her introverted ways. She talks a lot about how most people are happy to help you or at least talk to you about their work. Mentioned in this episode Scientific Dispatches Consulting LLC

We're back! This season, we will interview academics and recovering academics. We're starting this season off with interviewing the hosts of Hello PhD, Joshua Hall and Daniel Arneman. Hello PhD  and the Recovering Academic share a common desire to talk about what no one talks about during your science training. We both hope that by talking about these issues out loud that people who feel isolated realize that they're not alone. When in Rome... To make our guests feel at home, we brought the Hello PhD tradition of reviewing a beer on air to our podcast. We had to find a beer that was available in four different cities in three different states. The Ballast Point Brewing Company Unfiltered Sculpin' Extra Hopped IPA (limited edition!) was up to that challenge. It's definitely hoppy, but delicious. It also had a sextant on the label, which was appropriate for our conversation. How do you know when to break up with academia? We invited Josh and Dan to talk on our podcast after Cleyde heard Episode 75: When Resea

We're coming back for Season 2 on August 22nd! Curious about what this means for our podcast? Listen to our Season 2 trailer and find out!

Courtesy of @BWJones In this episode, we discuss the importance of taking breaks. Breaks come in many forms and in different durations—from just an hour to a weekend to a full week (or more!). Preventing burnout and recharging yourself are vital no matter where you are in academia—committed to staying in academia, transitioning out of academia, to fully transitioned. This episode marks the end of Season One of the Recovering Academic Podcast. We are going to take our own advice and take a break. We're looking forward to talking with you all when we return!   Discussed in this episode: NFL Coaching Culture Boosts Heart Risk TED Radio Hour: Simply Happy  

In this episode, we discuss if we regret doing a PhD and what advice we would give our younger selves. Many times we focus in on the microlevel—what results will this experiment bring, what publications will we get—and forget to look at the macrolevel—what do we want to do, where do our interests lie. Getting a PhD can sometimes encourage us to think only about the details and not about the big picture. We also discuss the importance of trying new things—even if they aren't fully planned. “The secret of getting ahead is getting started. The secret of getting started is breaking your complex overwhelming tasks into small manageable tasks, and starting on the first one.” ― Mark Twain Also discussed in this episode: No Tomorrow—a TV series Melancholia—a Film

In this episode, we discuss the elephant in the room: Are you still a scientist after you leave academia? After spending a decade or more identifying as a scientist, deciding to leave may academia may be mean more than abandoning a culture—it may mean losing your identity. Many factors come into play with deciding who is (and who isn't) a scientist. Join us as we explore what it means to be a scientist.   Mentioned in this episode: Lenny Teytelman's post: If you're no longer doing science, are you still a scientist?

Note: This episode originally had a file error when uploaded. We've corrected it. You can re-download the corrected version now. Thanks for supporting the Recovering Academic Podcast! In this episode, we discuss how to tell your story of leaving academia. The age-old advice of staying positive about why you left your previous position can be difficult—especially because academia is held up as this ideal position. We talk a bit about how we handled or are handling telling this story through our cover letters and CVs. Telling this story isn't only about spinning it as positive—in many cases it is positive.   Don't feel like you're not doing enough.  Sometimes doing more is not necessarily better. -@Doctor_PMS Mentioned in this episode: Quantum tunnelling The Secret Ask a manager      

Courtesy of @BWJones Getting over the fear of failure. As academics, we are inherently perfectionists. There's nothing like applying for jobs to bring out those tendencies. In this episode, we discuss our fear of failure, what causes it, and how we got over our fear. And Ian makes us laugh hysterically over an extended metaphor.     Even if it's n=1... you still have to do the experiments with your life. -@IHStreet Mentioned in this episode: Dunning-Kruger Effect Dealing with Impostor Syndrome The Expanse (TV Show)

photo by Ian Street In this episode, we discuss how we use Twitter, ways to get involved in twitter, and hashtags. Twitter can be an amazing tool for transitioning out of academia. If you're wondering where we all hang out (virtually), then join Twitter. For us, Twitter is our virtual water cooler where we keep in touch with each other, talk science, and hang out.  Also: Learn the origins of @Doctor_PMS's twitter handle! I can't tell you what will happen [if you join Twitter]... but random things will pop up that are amazing. -@IHStreet Twitter Profiles: Amanda (@LadyScientist) Ian (@IHStreet) Doctor_PMS (@Doctor_PMS) Twitter Tools: Tweetdeck (For laptop/desktop) Twitter Official Twitter App for iPhone or Android

Birds networking. Photo by Ian Street. In this episode, we discuss asking for help. There comes a time in the transition process where you may want (or need!) someone's assistance. This comes in many forms: talking to friends, reaching out to your network, finding a career/life coach. We talk about what a career/life coach is (and isn't), tips on how to find one, and why you might want to talk to a coach. We also assert that you shouldn't be afraid to ask for help! Don't be afraid to ask for help because you will be surprised of how people are willing to help you. -@Doctor_PMS Links for this episode: Reading Rainbow One Hundred Years of Solitude (Family Tree) Workflowy Career/Life Coaches: From PhD to Life (Jen Polk) Lilli Research Group (Maren Wood) Entropia Consulting (Dr. Marquita Qualls)  

Making the transition requires you to take on extra work. Work in the form of side work (a new side hustle), informational interviews, going to conferences in your new field, attending workshops, making different versions of your resume, and so on. How do you stay productive during this time? How do you stay on track? In this episode we discuss our difficulties with staying productive (you're not alone!) and the tricks we've figured out along the way.   Discussed in this episode: Slap Productivity