Although I love being a researcher, it’s also difficult from time to time. And here is one reason why.
In research, there are times when a phase comes to an end, usually every two or three years. Be it the project you’re working on or your contract, here in Germany it’s usually the two together. I’ve no idea how others deal with it, but for me, transition phases are challenging: While finishing this one phase or project, I’m already starting to prepare the next steps.
Looking back to the project that is about to end, there are still lots of things on the table such as dissemination of studies, communication of findings, outline of future research: As I want each of the studies conducted to be published, I focus on writing manuscripts during that time. Network activities such as conference participations and invited talks deserve careful preparation, too, for abstracts, talks and book chapters. Besides, I spend some time on communicating the things I’ve done to a broader audience, so I invest some time for press releases. Finally, I try and save some time outlining research questions that have not been answered, and I sketch related steps to address them. That’s about it for the part of the transition phase that relates to the past.
Looking ahead and into the future, I’m sure that there will be exciting opportunities along the way, but they are not yet within my reach. The focus for the next steps is thus on future research ideas, grant proposals and job applications: I aim to transfer ideas for future research into meaningful purposes and doable projects. From all formats of grants that are currently being offered, I search for the ones that suit my situation and start preparing proposals. And finally, I apply for jobs that I think match my interests and profile.
So how to deal with this diversity of tasks alongside of uncertainty? I guess there’s just one thing to do when it comes to transition phases: Keep going, finish the one, prepare the other. And reach out for the next exciting steps along the way!