I had a great conversation about Science with my boss today. The best part was that I could tell he specifically made time to have the chat, in part because he knows that I need to get shit sorted soon if I want to do any significant field work this summer. Still, it would have been easy enough for him to forget the urgency of the upcoming field season, as he is not a field scientist.
Our lab's work divides out into two vastly unrelated subject areas that are bound together by one broad theme. The other postdoc's specialty is Area 1 and mine is Area 2. The technician is also interested in Area 2, but he'll be leaving in a few months. PI is a specialist in Area 1 but has dabbled heavily in Area 2. I'm not sure which one he prefers; I think 1 but the other postdoc guesses 2 and PI himself says his passion is the broad theme that ties them together. Recently, I was chatting with the other postdoc about how I would be sad when the technician leaves because I will be losing my scientific buddy. I wouldn't be surprised if she conveyed this to our PI and that precipitated our conversation today.
Anyway, I'm encouraged because PI and I are on the same page about the kind of projects I should do. Moreover, he seems very willing to give me the time I need to figure out experimental designs, gather preliminary data before we commit to a bigger project, and just learn some of this new stuff. I'm really glad I took this job.
4 comments:
Glad to hear it!
Cool! I'm really happy it's working out for you!
So glad to hear things are going well for you. It sounds like a great fit!
It's really awesome when you and your PI are on the same page and you don't have argue or plead you case over and over again to drive your project in the direction you would like it to go. I hope this makes for a productive post-doc for you. Also, I am glad to read that you are still happy with your decision to work in your current lab. :)
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