To be a good communicator you really have to love communicating. This means that being an introvert can be one of the biggest hinderances to getting known and subsequent career progression. Introversion often goes hand in hand with perfectionism and perfectionism among scientists is commonplace. That’s actually a good thing because without this element of perfectionism, the science wouldn’t be happening.
You don’t need me to tell you how important accuracy is in research, however what you might need to hear from me is that this tendency can be your worst enemy if you’re not able to turn it off outside of the lab and when talking with other scientists who are also perfectionists.
One reason introverted scientists find it particularly hard to network and move up the ranks could well be that this perfectionism is not only highly valued, it’s actually lived by scientists. Meaning scientists not only have a natural impulse to investigate and search for inconsistencies, they can also be very blunt about their observations.
They also don’t always support others very well when they’re presenting their research. It can be that they just haven’t practiced the necessary social skills to display enough sensitivity towards others when they’re talking about their research. This in turn can make them rather straight talking in their critique which further compounds the situation, particularly when you’re living and working in Germany where directness and criticism are particularly commonplace.
That’s why building social skills in scientists is so important because in an industry where accuracy is essential allowing more tolerance within an area that facilitates sharing of ideas can be hard to accept for just the reason that it goes agains the grain of who you are as an individual.
To do this you first need to get over your internal belief that any inaccuracies in your communication will reflect badly on your research, particularly if you’re a non native speaker. It’s within your introverted perfectionist nature to keep things to yourself until you know they’re perfect or within your personal tolerance of what perfection means. Your research, your ideas are your baby, therefore you feel at your most vulnerable speaking about them to your peers… just as they do with theirs. Which makes sense, doesn’t it?
It’s also a bit of a catch 22 situation. You don’t want to communicate until you’re sure what you have to say is perfect, because you don’t want to be criticised in front of your peers, but you’re also not comfortable with too much attention and praise about how amazing it is either. You don’t really want to be in the spotlight for either reason.
The solution? Start small and get used to communicating in safe environments so that you’re aware of how you sound when talking to others. It might sound silly, but getting used to your own voice and what it feels like to actually speak to others not only helps you, it helps them get used to how and who you are. I’m fully aware that introverts have a particular aversion and hate of making small talk, but not all small talk has to consist of superficial fluff!
The key to having successful interesting ‘small talk’ is to actually be interested in the answers to the questions you ask. When you’re interested, the conversation isn’t superficial and in my experience, it can go deep really quickly when similar minds connect.
As Nature magazine has reported, not only do ‘Scientists need more time to think’ July 2024, but they also need time to think out loud with other like minded people. ‘Many in the scientific community agree on the need to help those researchers to amplify their voices’. That last quote comes again from Nature, but as far back as November 2016, so it seems that unsurprisingly many scientists haven’t evolved so much over the last decade.
If you relate to these themes and would like some support gaining the confidence to start speaking up and becoming more visible, dm me.
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