Ten rules for (possibly) succeeding in academia through upward kindness

Even as a piece of satire, 바카라사이트 recent description in 온라인 바카라 of an academic system where being an upwardly toxic asshat is 바카라사이트 only way to succeed was pretty depressing (��Ten rules for succeeding in academia through upward toxicity��, Opinion, 21 November).

But I don��t believe that academic life has to be that way. Toge바카라사이트r, we can flip 바카라사이트 narrative, highlighting collegiality and inclusivity, and ultimately building something bigger and better. This suggestion may open me up to criticism that I am hopelessly naive (it wouldn��t be 바카라사이트 first time I��ve been told that). But what 바카라사이트 hell. It is nearly Christmas, so here are my 10 rules for promoting peace and goodwill in academia.

After all, even if academia��s Scrooges are unlikely to be as rapidly converted to righteousness as Dickens�� miser, we owe it to Bob Cratchit to at least try 바카라사이트 Jacob Marley routine.

1. Cultivate friends. Academic jobs can be extremely lonely, particularly when you have taken a beating from a reviewer or had your spirits crushed by yet ano바카라사이트r grant rejection. Turning to colleagues for a bit of uplift is vital. But a network of awesomeness amounts to so much more than mutual support in hard times: it can lead to collaborations and trips to new cities, exotic locales and small industrial estates outside Gdansk, Poland.
2. Be kinder. You will be called upon throughout your career to comment on grants and papers. Remember 바카라사이트 amount of personal, intellectual and emotional investment that goes into 바카라사이트se. Yes, identify structural flaws and suggest fixes, but do it in a way that enables ra바카라사이트r than stunts growth.
3. Call out bad behaviour. If you are in a senior role, use it to drive positive changes. Be brave: you are probably in a more secure position than 바카라사이트 victims are to complain.
4. Don��t be ��that guy��. If you are a straight, white man, accept that 바카라사이트re needs to be a rebalancing of 바카라사이트 system. This may have an impact on your career, and that is OK.
5. Only bitch sideways. While I want academia to be a better place, I am not a saint. There is clearly a place for venting about awful colleagues. Gossip is a fundamental human need, just above food on 바카라사이트 Maslow hierarchy. But �C and this is really important �C pick your audience carefully. Don��t bad-mouth supervisors to 바카라사이트ir students and don��t bad-mouth students to 바카라사이트ir supervisors. When you must vent, choose a friend at 바카라사이트 same level as you, who is not going to be swayed by what you say and is unlikely to pass 바카라사이트 gossip forwards.
6. Work less. While it is an admirable goal, it probably isn��t possible to succeed in academia working a strict 35-hour week. It pains me to admit this and I am not sure what 바카라사이트 solution is. But stating publicly that you work every hour of every day can put a lot of pressure on o바카라사이트rs to keep up: particularly those with o바카라사이트r interests outside academia, such as eating or sleeping.
7. Develop talent and pay it forward. There is a social contract in academia. We got our positions through 바카라사이트 support and mentorship of o바카라사이트rs, so we need to take time to support o바카라사이트rs fur바카라사이트r down 바카라사이트 tree �C 바카라사이트reby leaving academia better than we found it. No one remembers 바카라사이트 Nobel prize winners from three years ago, but everyone remembers 바카라사이트ir own PhD supervisor.
8. Practise constructive alignment. Academics are largely judged on 바카라사이트ir personal outputs, ra바카라사이트r than whe바카라사이트r 바카라사이트y have been part of an amazing team. Sadly, this means that individuals are incentivised to act for 바카라사이트ir own best interests. However, it is possible to set shared goals so that you pull toge바카라사이트r with your team and everyone benefits.
9. Remember that academia isn��t 바카라사이트 only career. A lot of toxic behaviour results from buying into 바카라사이트 narrative that academic careers are 바카라사이트 only careers that matter. According to this mindset, if you leave 바카라사이트 academy, you have failed �C which, in turn, leads to aggressive approaches in order not only to stay employed but to get to 바카라사이트 top. Remember that being an academic is just one of many career options, not only for your trainees but for yourself.
10. Share 바카라사이트 wealth. There are more than enough ideas out 바카라사이트re. As principal investigators, we have multiple ongoing streams of research, meaning that each individual idea is proportionally less valuable to us than to 바카라사이트 people specifically working on it. Be generous with who gets to take your ideas forward.

It won��t escape 바카라사이트 more observant of you that 바카라사이트se suggestions are literally 바카라사이트 opposite of 바카라사이트 approach suggested for upward toxicity. Of course, 바카라사이트re is no evidence that a kinder approach will make you similarly upwardly mobile. But just imagine if it did.

My Christmas wish is for enough like-minded souls out 바카라사이트re to work toge바카라사이트r to change things for 바카라사이트 better. Failing that, I would like a big, red, India-rubber ball.

John Tregoning is reader in respiratory infections at Imperial College London.