Archive

Popular posts from this blog

(Academic) Leadership ... in "13 Days"

Image
Reflections on academic leadership ... In Dec 2017, I had just been appointed Head of the School and asked a wise colleague for guidance on meeting the challenges of the role. Knowing that I am a film buff, she gave me a copy of a movie called "Thirteen Days" (2001) together with a brief note highlighting some key leadership behaviours that she felt were important to learn. At the time, I noted the key points she had written but never actually got around to watching the movie - mainly because it was on a DVD and we no longer had a player in the house!  I completed my tenure in the role, with some successes but also faced several challenging situations.  My colleague's advice was useful when faced with particular challenges, but I also found a need to adapt some aspects of the guidance to fit my personality and style. Six years later, as we approach the end of 2023, I noticed that "Thirteen Days" was available on one of the streaming services we subscribe to and ...
Read more

Love work, even if it doesn't love me back ...

Image
"Work won't love you back" As the end of 2024 loomed, inspiration for my last blog post of the year (now first blog post of the new year!) was hard to come by, and I asked some colleagues for ideas. One suggestion was:  "Looking back 10 years, how does your current career align with your past vision and goals—have they changed? " As I reflected on this, I recollected one key goal from much earlier in my career - based on the much quoted aphorism that "If you do what you love, you won't work a day in your life" . This is seen as an achievable goal in academia, where we have a lot of flexibility and agency to pursue our research interests and teach subjects related to these interests. However, over the years I have seen (and personally experienced) how this can be a double-edged sword - used wisely a useful tool to motivate us to overcome challenges, but if used unskilfully can be harmful to oneself and others. This latter aspect is the focus of one ...
Read more

Managing Your Mental Health During Your PhD — A Survival Guide

Image
Content warning: mental health, anxiety,  depression. I have just finished reading "Managing Your Mental Health During Your PhD — A Survival Guide" by Dr. Zoë J. Ayres, which is an important resource for PhD students and supervisors.  It is definitely a book that I wish was available when I did my own PhD and I am writing this review to help highlight why it is a useful addition to the resources we use in supporting PhD students. Completing a doctoral research project, writing up and defending a thesis with the goal of being awarded a PhD can be a challenging undertaking and it is not unusual for a students to experience some downs (and ups) in their mental health. This was certainly my experience, where my mental health went through all of the following at different stages of the process:  disorientation as I moved from industry to academia; a sense of accomplishment when I presented my first paper at a workshop; anxiety as I felt unsure of whether my work was good enou...
Read more