Panel discussion presented by Carrie Masiello, Joff Silberg, Hadley Wickham, and Junghae Suh at the 2010 NSF ADVANCE Workshop: Negotiating the Ideal Faculty Position, A Workshop for Underrepresented PhDs and Postdocs in Science, Engineering and Psychology
September 19-21, 2010
Carrie’s week
Junghae’s day
Joff’s day
Hadley’s week
Think about how your ideal time distribution differs from how you really spend your time
Ideal (hrs)
Real (hrs)
Lab Work (experiments)
15
???
Reading&writing (grants/papers/editing)
20
???
Teaching (preparation/lecture/grading)
10
???
Staff Management (guidance/support/etc)
5
???
Service activities (committees/meetings/reviewing)
2
???
Care giving (partner/child/pets/parents)
23
???
Self care (boot up/eating/exercise/cleaning)
5
???
Transportation
2
???
If your ideal and real time use are different, think about strategies to protect your time
Time for Self:
Make time for other interests (sports, music, reading, etc.)
Stay healthy (eat right, exercise)
Spend time with friends and family
Make commitments
Lose the Guilt:
Understand limitations, be realistic, expect imperfection
Don’t compare yourself to others
Accept your work style (regular 8-5er or work binger)
Saying “no”:
Never commit immediately. Ask for time to consider.
Is the work something important? Something you care about?
Something that will help you in the future?
Saying “No” enables you to say “Yes” in the future.
When “yes”, then follow through with time, energy, and conviction.
There are numerous strategies to protect your time!
control your vortex of activity:
it feels a lot different when you decide what’s important.
don’t let others’ emergencies determine your day.
be mindful of how much service you sign up for
easy to sign up for too much
actively limit your teaching preparation time. You can’t do everything perfectly
you have the right to say “no” to many things; don’t hesitate
limit your review requests, panels, and talks
choose strategically
while service matters for tenure, you must publish solid research
conserve enough energies for this
Additional considerations when thinking about work-life balance
Being present
Enjoy the moments, appreciate the “now”.
Creating a new life
Become a social organizer! It’s easy to gather a few people for a happy hour out on the town, a game night at your place, or a special TV event (the debates, TV show finale, etc.).
Change of pace
Find alternate places to work besides your home, office, and lab. Look for internet cafes or a park with great picnic tables, etc.
Educate others
Educate family, friends, significant others, and students about your job and your work style. Some may not entirely understand academia or the tenure process or how you in particular are working toward your goals. These people play a very important role in balancing your life so it really helps to have them fully on board!
