This morning while I was lying in bed trying to decide whether or not I had penumonia (yeah, like the “Dr.” in front of my name is REALLY going to help me with that), I came across this post by Alexis over at her A Blog to be Named Later. The post is titled, “Why leaving academia is harder than I thought it would be,” and boy, does she really hit the nail on the head. Even though it’s been three years since I left, Alexis’ summation of her feelings really brought back memories of my own departure. Anyone who is undergoing this transition can no doubt connect with Alexis when she writes,
It’s not just leaving a career or changing jobs; it’s leaving behind an old identity, a false, ill-fitting one, so that there can be room for my authentic self to emerge.
This was, hands down, absolutely how I felt when I left academia. And of course, it’s precisely because I am more myself now than I ever was in all the years I spent in grad school that making the choice to quit was absolutely the right one. But even though I knew the life of academia was too narrow for me, and even though I had a strong feeling I would be of much greater use to the world in a different professional capacity, making the decision to leave was fraught with intense emotions. Alexis speaks about those emotions so honestly. Check it out and see if you identify.
Update on another great blog: I’ve just found YoungFemaleScientist, written by Ms. Ph.D. This is the first time I’ve stumbled across this blog (and it sounds, from this post here, like she’s planning on leaving academia, actually). It’s quite enjoyable reading, even for a former social scientist like me (especially because she’s got quite a solid gender perspective). But this post, Feeling Not Good Enough, might also resonate with readers of this blog.
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