You … In Charge

You ... In Charge

Finding the right career path and being a focused, efficient and productive leader

Each issue, we’ll ask a trainee member to pose their career questions to an established investigator and mentor. Here, Jody Greaney, PhD (left), assistant professor of kinesiology at the University of Texas at Arlington, asks for tips on changing careers and balancing greater responsibility in the lab. Jennifer Pollock, PhD, professor of medicine in the division of nephrology and co-director of the cardio-renal physiology and medicine program at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, shares her advice for finding the right career path and being a focused, efficient and productive leader.

Q: Where can I find information about and exposure to non- academic careers?
A: All career paths have strengths and weaknesses— you need to find your career niche that fits at this time of your career. APS and many scientific societies have information about a variety of non- academic careers, and most are just an internet search away. You can also use your networking connections within APS and at your institution for introductions to internships and shadowing opportunities for non- academic career paths.

Q: What is an effective way to initiate a conversation with your mentor about changing career paths?
A: Determining your career niche is difficult, but talking to your mentor should not be. You should not feel intimidated by this at all. Having several shorter conversations is better than having just one long conversation. This also allows you to digest information between conversations. Self-evaluations are also helpful in deciding when you might be ready for a change in your career.

Q: As a graduate student or postdoc, how do you manage “drinking from the fire hose” and juggling many new responsibilities—teaching, new preps, committee work, advising students, family responsibilities, etc.—all at once?
A: By setting priorities and focusing on the important parts! I am not a particularly “organized” person. However, I am very focused on what I consider important. My family, students and fellows always are a priority for me. You need to figure out what is the top priority for you at your career level and then keep this your focus. Also, only take on tasks that you know you can do well and efficiently—this helps you keep your focus on the things that matter.

Q: How can junior faculty effectively transition from a highly productive postdoc lab—equipped with all the right tools, resources and systems—to the total halt in productivity and data collection that can occur when getting your own lab up and running?
A: Getting a lab up and running is not trivial, and the time and effort should not be underestimated. One strategy for this transition is to have one or two manuscripts that you will finalize and submit during the time that you are setting up your new lab. This actually helps you to show productivity during this transition and to prevent a gap in your publication record. Setting goals (with deadlines) for all functions of your new lab, including completing regulatory paperwork and submitting manuscripts, abstracts and grants, is critical for staying highly productive.

Q: What’s a strategy to form new collaborations with colleagues at another institution or outside academia?
A: In collaborations, there needs to be a “win-win” for both sides. In other words, there should be something that you are bringing to the collaboration for the other person and vice versa. You need to be very clear what the expectations and timeline will be. Quite often, this is done in small increments until a regular working relationship is established. It is best to have this in writing—it’s usually an email but can even be a formal collaborative agreement. This way, there are no surprises, which could undermine trust.

Got a career question you’d like to submit? Email it to education@the-aps.org and we’ll consider it for an upcoming Mentoring Q&A.

This article was originally published in the September 2019 issue of The Physiologist Magazine.