TIP TROVE | When Postdocs Change Their Minds
If you're not excited about what you're doing, you're just not going to do it well. Mentors should encourage independent thinking. If postdocs want to change the direction of their projects, or explore new avenues, I certainly encourage it. However, if you find that you've chosen an area of research that doesn't interest you, I would advise you to think carefully about your choices ... and if you are absolutely certain you want to make a change, you should find another lab. I have found that most of the people who decide to leave the lab want to leave academic science altogether. Once done, however, a chain of events set into action makes it difficult to return. Still, I tell people they have to do what they're interested in--what makes them happy.
--Gordon Keller, faculty adviser postdoctoral, and professor, Center for Gene ...
