Biophysical Society Bulletin | May 2021

Career Development

The Importance of Establishing Connections Outside of Academia We live in a society with frequent

multifaceted. You just have to ask and you could find a new connection! In other words, talk with your friend in a casual setting and just ask what they do outside of the lab or for fun. You might hear something that is of interest to you. A crucial benefit of outside-academia connections is learning a new technique or tool that can be used in the lab! After all, work is part of life and we all could use a little bit of a differ- ent perspective. So, venturing outside our comfort zone and making connections can be an advantage. Something you learn might help you unlock a difficult problem when carrying out an experiment! — Molly Cule

interactions, either in person or online. If we analyze these interactions, we can see that many of us have distinct social circles with little or no overlap among them. Google used this concept to launch a social media platform a few years ago. Working in science and in an academic setting, a major chunk of our personal interactions are within

our labs and with our academic colleagues. Outside academia, many of us establish connections. One of the common ways is through a hobby or activity that allows us to unwind. In due course, we end up making friends and connections with people from other facets of life. These connections are more important than just for the social aspects of our lives. Some- times, a periodic reminder is helpful that we need to take advantage of these connections. It can be helpful when we communicate science to non-scientists. For example, I used to go for piano classes three times a week. Sometimes, a casual conversation would veer into how the day went and I would explain the challenging part of my current experiment to them. Here is where I found I could use my science communication skills to convey in easy-to-under- stand language what I did for a living. In other cases, it is the other way around, where I am the listener and get a peek into someone else’s work world. Listening is just as important a skill as being able to communicate science to those outside science. For another example, a friend of mine enjoyed dancing, and they were also a full-time researcher. Like in the ABBA song “Nina, Pretty Ballerina,” Friday nights were a transformation. As a dancer, they were involved in planning events, getting the word out, and basically running the show. The skills they sharpened through these experiences were useful for or- ganizing academic events. Most importantly, they learned interpersonal skills. Many of us working in academic labs take time to learn these social skills and we look to our colleagues as examples and follow their lead. In my view, the learning curve for acquiring such skills is less steep when we have connections outside academia. Of course, for some of us who know ourselves to be shy or reticent, establishing new connections is hard and takes time. Many of you might wonder where to start? I would suggest looking at the people you already know. You might only recognize them from one perspective, but they are surely

Join the BPS PUI Network Are you looking to connect with other Primarily Undergraduate Institution (PUI) faculties or interested in obtaining an academic position at a PUI? The Biophysical Society (BPS) invites you to join the BPS PUI Network, recently formed by the BPS Education Committee. The goal of the Network is to create an environment for current PUI faculty to network and share experiences with one another. Members of the Network can exchange tips and ideas such as teaching strategies, latest trends in education technology, online teaching, and more. Graduate students and postdocs interested in obtaining academic positions at PUIs are also welcome to join. Questions can be directed to Margaret Mainguy at mmainguy@biophysics.org. Join today at biophysics.org/PUI-Network

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