Mentorship and 1-on-1s
One of the most rewarding parts of my job is mentoring. I take this role very seriously: If I can help you become a better scientist, then not only does that make both of us happy, but it helps our lab be more productive, cost-effective, and a good place to work.
My Mentoring Philosophy
At the heart of a good mentoring relationship is good communication. If we both know what the other person is looking for and their own communication styles, then we'll be in a good place to build something great between us.
So here are a few thoughts about my own natural inclinations when it comes to my mentoring style/philosophy to set the stage for further conversations between the two of us:
My role is to guide, advise, and be available to answer your questions, not micromanage
At the start of a new project, we will sit down multiple times to discuss the scope of the project - what do we hope to answer? What experiments/algorithms do we need to do to get that answer? Whats a general timeline to achieve that? After that, we will be in regular, weekly-or-more-frequent communication about the project, discussing problems that arise and adjusting as results (or the lack of them) necessitate, but I will not tell you on a weekly basis what experiments you need to do when, or, unless truly necessary, how exactly to set up your experiments - unless you ask for my help, of course!
My role is to help you develop into an independent, but highly collaborative, scientist
I will push you to interact with other researchers in the lab and beyond, and promote an open-science culture in the lab. We all benefit when we learn and help one another.
Science is exciting, and there is no one set path on it
I mean this in two ways:
In science, very frequently there is more than one way to solve a problem or identify a result. We will sit down and brainstorm a path forward, but oftentimes, if the idea you bring to the table makes sense, I will tell you to try it out and report back if it worked! Know that this me trusting that you have thought about this problem carefully (see the next point) and that I think your approach has merit - if I think/know it won't work, I will tell you. I want to develop you as an independent thinker, and that involves allowing you to be independent and build your scientific intuition!
There are many different directions your career can go after your time in the lab. I will support whatever path that is, whether it is Academia, Industry, Regulation, Law School (it happens more than you'd think!), or anything else. There are some paths that I am more familiar with than others, but I will make sure to connect you with the resources that you need to further your career path
I know you are smart and you want your project to succeed
If you are in this lab, it is because you are smart and excited about science. Within a few months of starting your project, you will have thought harder about your specific issue than perhaps anyone else in the entire world. While I will always help to guide the overall path of your project, especially as you reach new areas of it that you are not as familiar with, I know that when it comes to the minutia of your project - the unexpected phenotypes, the detailed workings of the codebase - you are very much the expert, and I will treat you as one!
I will trust you to come to me if you need help
I love to work through problems with people. I love to engage with scientific questions. I love to examine a protocol or go line-by-line through code looking for a bug. But I can't help if I don't know there's a problem, so please, come talk with me if you need help! Likewise, if something in the lab isn't working out - especially if it has to do with how we are communicating with one another, please let me know so we can work to fix it!
Mentorship Meetings
I will always make myself available to meet in person or via Zoom. We can talk about research ideas, what you're doing in lab now, what you'd like to do in the future, what your career aspirations are, about a new paper, whatever you are thinking about. I want our meetings to be a place where you feel comfortable discussing what is on your mind, with the goal of helping us to do good science and helping you to develop as a scientist - of whatever flavor that might look like in the long run
Drop-in meetings
When I'm in my office and the door is open, stop by for a drop-in meeting! If my door is closed, please knock. If my 'busy' sign is up, please send me a message via Slack or Email and I'll let you know when is a good time to come back! I also make my schedule available to people on Outlook - its not always 100% up-to-date, but you can check there to see if I'm in a meeting or something.
It's also totally fine to do the remote equivalent of a drop-in meeting on Slack, via direct message, at any time of day. If I'm online I can often try to find a few minutes to chat. Obviously, the rules on working hours apply here: do not expect an immediate response in the evenings or on the weekend.
Recurring meetings
All regular lab members should set up several recurring meetings with me. Scheduled meetings help both you and I make space for communicating about science, a crucial part of our scientific relationship!
Research Meetings. At the beginning of every quarter, we'll set up a schedule for weekly or bi-weekly meetings. Expect them to run around an hour in length. This is an opportunity to have a regular check-in on progress, on challenges regarding new projects, and help us stay on the same page and avoid pitfalls.
Literature Meetings. While you are getting your feet under you with regards to the field, its highly recommended that we meet for half an hour or so a week to go over research articles related to your project. We'll discuss at least one paper a week: your choice, but ask me for suggestions. This is to help you get comfortable with the field!
Career Planning Meetings. While this can be part of our normal meetings, I want to meet with everyone at least twice a year for a meeting specifically about career planning: What is your long-term goal? What can we do in the next X months to move you in that direction? What questions do you have and who can I put you in contact with to get those questions answered?
How to schedule a meeting
Talk to me! Send me an email or a DM. If you see me walking through the lab, ask if you can meet later that day. We'll figure out a time that works for both of us.
What to do ahead of a meeting
For a drop-in meeting, just come by and chat.
In order to help make sure we're communicating well, we've adopted an agenda-based approach to our recurring 1-on-1 meetings (see the section: 1-on-1 meeting agenda template). We should both strive to fill this out ideally by the night before our meeting so if there's anything either of us has to do to prepare, we'll have the time to do so - please don't send me your manuscript 5 minutes before a meeting and expect me to have anything to say about it!
It's usually OK to cancel
While most of the time, meetings are productive and useful, you may find yourself with a scheduled meeting that you don't think you need. It's always OK to suggest that we raincheck; just let me know and we'll figure something out.
Logistics
Expectations & deadlines
In general, I'm pretty good at responding to emails and things that I get tagged on in Slack. If you don't get a reply from me within 24 hours, then its possible that I have missed your message. It's always OK to nudge me when you need a response! You are never being a bother by doing that. If I need some time before I can get back to you, I'll just let you know — no worries.
If you need me to do something for you in time for a deadline (like edit your conference abstract) then I'll want some more advanced notice. Email me or DM me on Slack well in advance of the deadline.
For something with a hard deadline that doesn't require much work, like reading an abstract or filling out paperwork, give me one week's notice.
For something with a hard deadline that does require substantial work, like writing a letter of recommendation or editing a grant proposal, give me at least two weeks' notice.
For anything requiring lots of back-and-forth, like manuscripts, applications, etc, give me as much notice as possible.
Also, when we're in a particularly busy time in the lab, it can be helpful to set arbitrary deadlines for getting things done. Feel free to set these for me, just as I'll set them for you.
Letters of recommendation
Let me know if you are applying to graduate school, postdocs, or grants that require a letter of recommendation. In general, I am happy to write these for all members of the lab. For some undergraduates, I will likely invite the graduate student, postdoc or staff member you work with to do a co-signed letter with me as they have often worked with you more directly than I have. We'll sort this out when you ask for a letter.
For most letters, it will be helpful if you provide a CV, instructions about the content of the letter, and information about what you're applying for.
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