Last week I was interviewed by David Austin Walsh from the History News Network; you can read the transcript of that here. David titled the interview, “Recent PhDs Need to Have their Confidence Boosted,” which it seems is something I said during our conversation . . . and I was right! I was reminded of this last night, during one of the post-PhD conference calls I hosted. Without me prompting it, that conversation turned to the importance of building confidence after grad school and while on the job market, academic or otherwise. And of course I completely agree. I told David,
Grad school is very good at grinding people down and making them think they suck, and that’s just not true. You do have experience coming out of grad school. I was a higher education professional for ten years in grad school, and so now I’m changing careers—or more accurately, changing jobs within the higher education field. That language may not be obvious, but it is true. I’m a mid-career professional.
Only once you realize you’re not a loser, not a failure, not without experience or skills or talents, can you change the way you talk about yourself. Only then will you change how you present yourself, and start to see all the many places where you could be of value. Then: watch out, world! I consider it my job—my mission!—to help people get to that point, and then revel in all the places they’ll go. (Yes, I intend to live vicariously through my friends, clients, and post-PhD peers.)
So, what would help? I’m going to reflect on what helped me and what might help others. I’ll let you know once I do that! What helped you embrace your own awesomeness? What would help you do that?
