Lodewijk and I were recently interviewed by Lexter Woodley for her podcast. As she describes it: Whether you’re on the fence about pursuing a PhD or knee-deep in your research, this conversation is packed with practical tips and hard-earned wisdom. From tackling procrastination and navigating tricky supervisor relationships to staying…
It’s such an itch-inducing word: networking. Immediately, I’m reminded of networking events where you don’t know anyone and have to pretend you’re having a good time, and of forced introductory rounds with games. Yuck… Maybe I’m projecting my own discomfort onto you, but I know few people who say, ‘Great,…
Suppose you want to learn how to bake bread. You look for someone to teach you and find Charles, a wiry, enthusiastic master baker with traditional checkered baker’s trousers who is eager to get started with you. He has won various awards, been featured in professional magazines, and presents at…
‘You have to take the rough with the smooth.’ In short, that’s how PhD students explain to me what they think about how they are supervised. Some are happy with how they are supported by their supervisor and (daily) tutor(s), others get really upset, insecure, frustrated and even unhappy. What…
When I was a child, I sometimes fell while playing, and ripped a hole in my jeans. As soon as I got home, I took off those ripped jeans and threw them in the laundry basket. I hoped my mother wouldn’t find out, or find out so much later…
Quite a while ago I gave a course to prospective mediators. One of the most important concepts I covered was the difference between a circumstance and the meaning we give it. Why is that difference so important? Because it is the source of so many conflicts! The more clear we…
