“Was not their mistake once more bred of the life of slavery that they had been living?—a life which was always looking upon everything, except mankind, animate and inanimate—‘nature,’ as people used to call it—as one thing, and mankind as another, it was natural to people thinking in this way, that they should try to make ‘nature’ their slave, since they thought ‘nature’ was something outside them” — William Morris


Monday, December 13, 2010

How to Get That Elusive Academic Job 18—the interview (the Suit)

When I was at school I had a teacher who had a rather sadistic way of grading students. He started at 0 (everyone else's 100%). Then he took points off for incorrectness.

It's the same with a suit. The point is not so much to show off as it is not to eff it up. You start at 0 in the eyes of your interviewers and get points off for incorrectness. So go with something that will not get you points off. There's no need to get a 1 or a 2. You start at 0.

If you're applying for jobs, get a suit now, whether or not you get an interview. Spend as much as you can on it without breaking the bank. It will do you some good.

Applying for a job after finishing a Ph.D is about turning yourself inside out. You've been involved in the most introverted process you've ever done, and now you have to show yourself to the world at large. It's very painful, therefore. You feel so clumsy coming up with words to describe your project and you fear people's judgment.

So getting a suit will MASSIVELY help your psyche. It's a kind of commitment. Spending some money on the you who is going to get a job is essential. Same with the ikebana (see posts below). You are starting to learn to CURATE yourself. (More on this soon.)

No comments: