Advocacy & Mentoring
“If I have seen further it is by standing on the shoulders of giants.” — Isaac Newton
In 2022, I applied to be AAAS Member Community Ambassador as I found the initiative interesting. I got selected for ambassadorship for Women in STEM. Many thoughts have raised overtime as I am also at a key stage of my career. From all discussions, events and initiatives from AAAS Superheroes (how they named us), my younger self has grown quite significantly. That has been an amazing opportunity to open my eyes in many ways. As I pursue with this, I will share here some thoughts...
From the idealist recipe of success to the reality. Seeking to be outstanding, creative, innovative, proactive, ambitious and what else… Whatever this seems to have only a little impact on our path without having the opportunity to stand on the shoulders of others. I believe that if one has potential, she/he will be able to move mountains further and faster by standing along with others who support her/him. Mentoring has appeared to me to be as important as research productivity in defining the needs for success and sustainability in science. However, it is still too much neglected. Senior postdocs, emerging group leaders, PIs and faculty members have an enormous impact on the new scientists “in-the-making” and I personally believe that our own willingness to invest in mentoring is key for productivity and well-being within research institutions. We may all help to fulfill the needs of mentees to seek personal achievements, professional development and well-being. And our way to support individual achievements of our mentees (besides own ones) has to be seen as a necessary achievement for the group. While it is not always visible, how we invest in involving, including and supporting others without a direct apparent benefit for our own personal achievements can, however, boost tremendously research productivity. I strongly believe that we can all make the difference for someone’s success and that this could on the long-term benefit the whole community.
If you are interested to discuss about advocacy and mentoring with me, please feel free to get in touch.
From the idealist recipe of success to the reality. Seeking to be outstanding, creative, innovative, proactive, ambitious and what else… Whatever this seems to have only a little impact on our path without having the opportunity to stand on the shoulders of others. I believe that if one has potential, she/he will be able to move mountains further and faster by standing along with others who support her/him. Mentoring has appeared to me to be as important as research productivity in defining the needs for success and sustainability in science. However, it is still too much neglected. Senior postdocs, emerging group leaders, PIs and faculty members have an enormous impact on the new scientists “in-the-making” and I personally believe that our own willingness to invest in mentoring is key for productivity and well-being within research institutions. We may all help to fulfill the needs of mentees to seek personal achievements, professional development and well-being. And our way to support individual achievements of our mentees (besides own ones) has to be seen as a necessary achievement for the group. While it is not always visible, how we invest in involving, including and supporting others without a direct apparent benefit for our own personal achievements can, however, boost tremendously research productivity. I strongly believe that we can all make the difference for someone’s success and that this could on the long-term benefit the whole community.
If you are interested to discuss about advocacy and mentoring with me, please feel free to get in touch.
#MentorFirst
