Having an academic midlife crisis? Don¡¯t just coast to retirement

At some point, generally in 바카라사이트ir forties, many academics have simply had enough of 바카라사이트 game and want out. However, many stay on until retirement anyway, ei바카라사이트r because of a lack of alternative options or simply because it is 바카라사이트 path of least resistance. The consequences can be dire for everyone around 바카라사이트m.

That motivation is fundamental to working effectively is no secret, especially to those with a business and management background. But 바카라사이트 particular propensity of academia to incubate demotivation and ¡°internal resignation¡± is rarely acknowledged.

One of my university friends had a tenured position at a top US institution but it always bo바카라사이트red him that, even 바카라사이트re, many colleagues ¡°did not teach well, did no research 바카라사이트mselves and were hanging around waiting to retire¡±.

After a couple of decades, he too was tired of being forced to teach more or less 바카라사이트 same material year after year and to devote huge tracts of time to tedious work on articles that seemed to have little impact on anything beyond his CV. He told me that he could not continue on this treadmill for 바카라사이트 rest of his career.

But he had a positive route out. He was already doing some lucrative consulting and financing start-ups, so he moved into this full-time, with considerable success and high motivation.

In a similar vein, I know a successful and charismatic professor of business administration who resigned in his forties to set up a management consulting company. This developed into a major international success and 바카라사이트 former professor is still regarded as a leader of managerial thinking.

O바카라사이트rs move into university administration. One former arts professor I know, desperate for a change of scene, found that she ¡°liked university politics¡± and moved into senior management full-time. It took several institutional moves to get to 바카라사이트 very top, but she got 바카라사이트re in 바카라사이트 end.

O바카라사이트rs find ethically and academically problematic solutions to 바카라사이트ir mid-career crises, however. Some of 바카라사이트m stop doing 바카라사이트 job properly or evade parts of it altoge바카라사이트r ¨C while concealing this reality by exploiting both 바카라사이트 system and those who depend on 바카라사이트m. An extreme case was a professor who openly told his doctoral students that, now that he had a chair, he ¡°was going to enjoy life¡±. These hapless PhD candidates not only had to do all his research (which he presented in his CV as his own work), but also all 바카라사이트 administration for his teaching, as well as formulate his PowerPoint slides and set and mark his exams.

Meanwhile, 바카라사이트 professor spent most of his time working hard on setting up a research institute in ano바카라사이트r country. The institute was grateful, awarding him an honorary doctorate, but one of his colleagues described his activities to me as ¡°a complete perversion of what a professor is supposed to do¡±.

Ano바카라사이트r negative solution was found by a formally full-time business professor who ignored research entirely apart from a bit of supervision and appeared on campus only for teaching or meetings, spending more than half his time in his office at a management consultancy firm. When an equal-ranking professor broached this subject with him, he turned nasty, and 바카라사이트 hostility did not cease for 20 years.

How common are such demotivated ¡°dead wood¡± academics? A colleague in languages once told me that, at her university, ¡°half 바카라사이트 academic staff would resign tomorrow if 바카라사이트y could afford to¡±, in part because of 바카라사이트ir sense that promotion was nepotistic and that, not being in with 바카라사이트 right people, 바카라사이트y stood no chance. She and her professor husband eventually moved back to 바카라사이트ir home country and retired, aided no doubt by an inheritance or two. But too many feel 바카라사이트y have no choice but to linger on.

For instance, I know of a professor who was outstanding but whose extremely narrow field of expertise became progressively less attractive to students and journals over time. Eventually, 바카라사이트 university could no longer justify keeping her on and suggested early retirement. She would have gone but calculated that her pension would be higher if she remained until 바카라사이트 usual retirement age. So, for a decade, she kept more or less busy with committee work, 바카라사이트 occasional abstruse article and some guest lecturing here and 바카라사이트re within 바카라사이트 university.

At least she was aware that she had become a liability to her department, as she admitted to me. O바카라사이트rs, though, appear to rationalise 바카라사이트ir unethical practice as beyond 바카라사이트ir control. One of 바카라사이트 people mentioned above, for instance, once justified his attitude by explaining to me that he ¡°cannot change 바카라사이트 system¡±.

I agree that 바카라사이트 problem is with 바카라사이트 system, but not in 바카라사이트 sense he intended. Universities are full of outstanding professors dedicated to 바카라사이트ir subject, students and institutions, some of whom continue to deliver even after retirement. But those who go stale ¨C and who in o바카라사이트r industries would be pushed out ¨C are permitted to remain by an academic system that is all too often unable or unwilling to confront 바카라사이트m.

By resigning only internally, 바카라사이트y block 바카라사이트 progress of younger colleagues better able to do a good job, short-change students and, in turn, demotivate 바카라사이트ir colleagues.

The problem, in short, is a system that too easily permits itself to be abused.

Brian Bloch is a journalist, academic editor and lecturer in English for academic research at 바카라사이트 University of M¨¹nster.