Ever wonder what topics are most popular with my followers? (lol, maybe not, but I was curious!)
I took a quick look at my top tweets by likes each month this past year. Some of these got a ton of amazing replies, others proved controversial.
Check them out below. And follow me @FromPhDtoLife on Twitter if you aren’t already.
January (link):
What skills did your PhD help you refine? (You can’t say research, writing, or teaching — something more specific!)
February (link):
The standard narrative is that a PhD is a good thing.
The standard narrative is that working as a prof is a dream job.
I see no evidence that these dominant narratives are losing ground. A few tweets is nothing.
Speak your own truth, esp if it provides a different perspective.
March (link):
Added more to my Zoom Basics doc today.
If you find yourself moving to online meetings, including online classes, and want to know more about using Zoom, this is for you!
Please RT / share. Let me know what else I should add or if you have any feedback.
April (link):
I learned a lot of stuff during my PhD. No one trained me to do anything, though. I was taught a few things in classes and otherwise learned via feedback and interactions of various kinds. Mostly, I learned on my own, by doing things.
There was no training.
You?
May (link):
“Mentor” is an earned title, not a given. Do not confuse your advisor, supervisor, PI for a mentor unless they prove they are one to you. Assume good intentions but recognize the power dynamics & competing priorities at play. True mentorship may not be possible in this situation.
June (link):
What got you to finish your PhD?
What kinds of intrinsic and external motivation were important to you? What helped?
July (link):
You owe no loyalty to your employer. You owe no loyalty to larger systems or cultures or norms.
The only loyalty you owe is to your own values & priorities, which may change, even radically, over time.
Be loyal to yourself & what you believe in. Be loyal to your true needs.
August (link):
You don’t need a PhD to be a scholar or researcher. Proof? All the research that’s done by folks who are not PhDs, including every single publication by a doctoral student. Most of the research in your field, whatever your field is, if probably planned & conducted by non-PhDs.
September (link):
What’s your favourite software that not everyone knows about?
October (link):
When you see your work as a calling instead of just a job, you are at higher risk of overwork, of burnout, of essentially subsidizing your employer by drawing on your own personal resources. Show up, do your best, and then live your life in your off hours.
November (link):
Let’s suggest some PhDs working outside academia for grad students to follow.
The more you interact e folks doing things in the world that aren’t the standard things you imagine PhDs doing in the world, the better your imagining will be.
Suggest yourself and others
December (link):
Who else did a Zoom Christmas meeting with family or friends?