Essays for building a post-PhD career on your terms.
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Don’t turn your PhD into a box.
If I have a PhD in biochemistry, then I need to find a biochemistry job. If I have a PhD in philosophy, then I need to find a job where I can directly use my philosophy degree. If I spent six years studying neuroscience, then surely I need to...
Warning PhDs vs fear-mongering
Illustration by Maame Ekua Acquah. Happy Friday from Southern California. "You are stripping PhDs of their agency." That statement is a brand new accusation I received this week that I found intriguing. I'm going to address it in...
What cats and fish can teach us about work.
Happy Friday from Southern California. One day during my almost 3-year stint as a postdoctoral researcher, I experienced what I later understood was an anxiety attack. I drove to work, parked, and started to shake. Then I started to...
Money guilt and disrupting yourself
Happy Friday from Southern California. I have two resources for you today. 1 - I recently had a conversation on the podcast with Dr. Andrew Churchill about leaving academia, starting a presentation coaching business, and fixing one's money...
A PhD is not a waste of time.
Happy Friday from Southern California. If you spent 5-7 years as a PhD student/candidate, finish, and then realize that you want to work outside academia, have you wasted your time? I got an email recently that brought this question up...
Play the long game.
Have you read Navigating the PIVOT? Did you find it useful? Please consider leaving me a review on Amazon. Happy Friday from Southern California. I celebrated my birthday this week. I'm always grateful for another year! Onwards… I receive...
Why I stopped putting my head down.
Happy Friday from Southern California. I read this sentiment on a popular thread on LinkedIn this week. "Industry should already understand what I bring as a PhD. I should not have to spend time explaining or proving why my skills are...
The tech company that stole academics’ work.
It's scorching hot in Southern California this week. I hope this newsletter finds you cool. Anyway, onto business… Recently, I ran a poll on LinkedIn asking a simple question: Did your PhD training adequately prepare you to navigate the job...
A “basic” practice that could change everything.
For years, I had an 8-minute video on how to optimize your LinkedIn profile. I was a little shocked at how many PhDs sent me messages to thank me for that video. At that time, I remember thinking, "But this should be basic?" But alas, even to...
Dating apps are the new…networking apps?
This week, I have 3 resources and a quote that made me think this week. Let's get into it: 3 resources: 1 - Earlier this month, an AI investor and founder made a post on X about AI and the world of work…and the internet went into...