So, the blog over at the Ronin Institute is honored to have its first two posts by Viviane Callier. Viviane got her PhD from Duke, and is currently doing a postdoc at Arizona State University. In her first post, she discusses the actual value of attending scientific meetings. Here’s a taste:

Meetings are a place where you meet new people, and catch up with people you already know. It’s where you meet someone you think you want to work with, and discover that that person is kind and enthusiastic and supportive, or alternatively is a slave-driving egomaniac. And that enables you to make a better-informed choice. It’s also where prospective employers meet prospective employees. After all, I don’t think I would have been hired in my current job, had I not met my employer at a conference a year ago (and that was before I had started looking for a job).

In her second post, she discusses a critical, but often underappreciated, skill in academia (and life, for that matter): asking for stuff.

Her advice came down to: ask for what you want. Most people are happy to give you what you want if they are able to, and if they know what you want. She also advised to practice asking for things – for example, negotiating a free dessert at a restaurant – sometimes people will be happy to give what is asked for, but it is also important to learn that it’s okay when people say “no”.

Drop by and read the full posts, and join in the discussion!