"What did you actually do as a professor?"

Dear Reader,

In a small-group coaching session, we talked about something that makes a lot of academics uncomfortable, namely, selling ourselves.

Someone joked that maybe we need to borrow a bit of “gym-bro energy” from corporate spaces.

We laughed.

But the discomfort underneath it was real.

Academia does teach you to advocate for your work, of course. Just mostly for insiders.

You learn how to make a case for your research, and why you should be supported in doing it.

You learn how to argue for the significance of your work.

You learn how to document outputs for grants, promotions, and tenure.

But most of the time you’re doing this for insiders, folks who know the institutional setting, your discipline, even your topic.

You do it using metrics and language that might only make sense to insiders.

So that when you venture beyond, folks no longer respond in positive ways to what you’re pitching them.

Suddenly “I published X articles and served on Y committees” doesn’t translate.

You know this already, eh?

Instead, you want to be able to say:

Here’s what changed because I was there. (Even if it was small and temporary and went unnoticed by the folks who really should have been paying attention.)
Here’s what improved. (Even if it only mattered for a handful of students or colleagues.)
Here’s what I built. (Even if it didn’t survive a budget cut the following year.)
Here’s what I consistently do well. (Even if the powers that be never gave you a raise because of it.)

That’s not ego.
That’s clarity.
And that clarity is a strategic advantage.

The reflection that helps you leave well is the same reflection that helps you articulate your value later.

It makes interviews smoother.
It makes networking conversations sharper.
It makes your LinkedIn profile more coherent.
It makes you more confident.

On March 5, at IMPACT 2026, my session is about building that advantage before you need it.

We’ll begin creating a Leaving Inventory—a deliberate record of your contributions, impact, growth, and patterns.

Not to puff yourself up.

Not to rewrite history.

But so you’re not scrambling later, trying to remember what you actually did.

And also, so that you can leave (academia, your institution, maybe even your research area or discipline entirely) well. That’s the mindset I’ll be taking during my workshop.

If you’re leaving something behind, do it deliberately.

📅 Thursday, 5 March, starting at 12:30pm EST (11:30am CST)
🎟 US$49
💻 Live + recordings

You can register here: IMPACT 2026.

FYI for PhD Career Clarity Program members: We’re doing something similar this Friday for our monthly workshop.

Cheers,

Jen

P.S. Ready to leave well? Or pivot to your next role more smoothly? Join me at IMPACT 2026.

Jennifer Polk, PhD