Well folks, today is officially my last day as a postdoc! I guess I'll have to change the description of my blog. I haven't really done much this week, didn't even go into lab yesterday as I have very little to do. I think this whole thing is actually starting to hit me. The prospect of being at home with not much to do for awhile is a little strange-ok, A LOT strange! I know I'll get used to it, but I'm glad I'm not someone who enjoys not doing much because that means I'll be motivated to keep trying to get back out there and find something I really like to do.
I have been networking, through friends, LinkedIn, and cold calls/emails to people in my area doing things I might like to do. So far, I've been completely amazed at how kind people have been and how willing they are to share their time to talk about their career. I e-mailed a professor at a local community college completely out of the blue, gave her a short description of my situation and asked if she'd be willing to chat with me about her job. I'm meeting with her next week. I realize that these are just 'informational interviews', but I still think it's the best way to find out not only about what a job really entails, but help find out about opportunities that become available in the future.
I'm looking at various types of writing and teaching right now. I have little to no experience with either of those things (at least formally), and therefore don't know which I would like to do. I just want to make an informed decision about my next career move because I feel like maybe that's where I got into trouble with my postdoc. I applied and interviewed at only one place, the lab I ended up in (obviously). I wonder if I had spent more time on the job market then, if I would have found something that would have been a better fit. I guess I'll never know, but I can try to prevent that from happening again this time by being more diligent and doing the research. I mean, I am a researcher, right? That's the one thing I know I've been trained to do!
Anyway, c'est la vie! Adios postdoc, and most likely benchwork altogether! It's been real!
Good luck with the talks and getting information and sorting out what you want to do!
ReplyDeleteA little piece of advice from my time as "non employed", it might be helpful to keep a routine with waking up and leaving the house so you don't end up in PJs in the afternoon (I had a few of those times when I didn't really pay attention but the whole day went by and left me with a little nagging)
all the best!
Yes! Good advice! And I'm remembering that I have to leave the house to accomplish things like work on my resume or edit a friend's thesis. But at least then I feel like I'm being productive! Very important!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the well wishes! I can certainly use them!
If you're interested in some science writing experience, New Voices is always looking for guest bloggers. Happy to work with you so you can have some published writing samples if you decide to go in that direction.
ReplyDeleteSo how's life on the other side of the bench treating you so far?
ReplyDelete@Heather Benson-yes please!!! I would LOVE to work with you!!!
ReplyDelete@funkdoctorx-see my post for today (4/14). I do like not having to work in a stressful postdoc anymore, but I'm finding not having a job right now comes with its own stress...