Category: Research

“Sorry we are not hiring” was the email I received for the first time when I applied for a job as a researcher. I had no money in my pocket and no job at that time because I recently quit a job that I hated. Fortunately, I had shelter to live but I knew, that too is not gonna last long if I don’t get a job fast. Gradually after so many disappointments and rejections I got the desired job. What I did to get the job was to apply the following three principles. If you follow these three principles, you will not just find a job fast but you will find the job of your dreams. Remember, I had no contacts and not everyone has contacts, so put this out of your mind that contacts will find you a job. If you are lucky, your contacts may find you a job, but not everyone is that lucky. Clearly I was not. The three principles are:

1- CALM DOWN AND THINK

Yes, it is natural to freak out and be nervous when you don’t have a job, but if you remain nervous and anxious, how will you do your job search and how will you perform in a job interview?
So what I want you to do is, just calm down and think. I want you to think and plan what kind of research job you want? It is not enough to just say that I want a research job. You need to have clarity about what research job do you want. You need to decide which specialty is your favorite and which specialty you don’t like. Because if you get a job in the specialty you don’t like, trust me your life will become extremely stressful. The same job you were praying to get, you will soon be praying to get out of. Now what you are supposed to do is, to write it down on a piece of paper about the exact specialty you want to join. I also sat calmly and planned. That planning gave me the direction as well as the motivation to get the rejections without getting disappointed.

2- DECIDE THE LOCATION

This is a very important point for a novice researcher specially if he is trying to find a job in the United States. If you are living in a remote area with only few universities around 100 miles radius, then it is time to move and start planning about a new location. Many new researchers will complain that I don’t have money, I am living with a friend or a relative, so how can I move. Well remember, if you find a job, you will immediately find a place to live. Talk to your employer right away to issue you an offer letter because you plan to rent a place nearby as soon as possible. Once you have the offer letter you can easily rent a room or a small apartment immediately. Thats what the landlords are looking for, some sort of guarantee that you can pay your rent. Just google rooms for rent in xyz city or just go to Craigslist. I decided California to be the place because California has a lot of research opportunities.

3- THE LAW OF AVERAGES

The law of averages says, “If you do something again and again, again and again, and again and again, a ratio will appear or an odd event will happen.” What does that mean? And what does it have to do with job search. The law of average does not only work in job hunt but it works everywhere in every industry and every part of our life. If you keep applying for jobs, you will get a rejection, and then you will get another rejection, then one after another you will get rejections. Don’t get disappointed, because the law of averages is working. You just need to keep the number of rejections and an odd event will happen- means a YES will come after so many NOs. A yes has to come no matter what, whether you like it or not, it is a simple mathematical law. The Yes is waiting to come. In easy language, a Yes is due, so just decide to get 100 NOs and trust me you will get a job. One of my friends once called me from Texas and ask me to guide her on how to get a job that offers legal work permit because she couldn’t legally work in this country. Guess what did I say? I asked her to follow the law of averages and because her case was trickier and she needed a work visa or permit, I asked her to contact 500 places for her job hunt. She did exactly the same. In less than ten days, she called me and told me that she got hired and the company offered her legal work permit. It was even faster than I thought, I thought it will take 3-6 month for her to find such an opportunity, but she found this opportunity in less than 10 days.

I now emphasize this to everyone to apply for as many jobs as possible, because it is a numbers game. I want you to do the same, apply for as many jobs as possible, even if the company is not hiring. Just call them and ask, may be they just got a position and it was not just posted on the internet. I did the same, and guess what was the number job position that gave me the job? I still remember that, it was the 300th email I sent to a lab that got me hired as volunteer. And based on this volunteer experience I found a paid job very soon.

CONCLUSION:

Job hunt in any field is a science and art. There are many other factors that need to be followed to find a job. The above mentioned points are for those who have no contacts and want job fast. Just don’t give up and keep applying for jobs.

Many students ask me this question that “what are the most common mistakes they can avoid while writing a research article?”.In my opinion the most common mistakes that every author must avoid while writing a research paper are as follows:

1- NOT CONSULTING THE EXPERTS

Many novice researchers kick start their research writing by just deciding a topic without realizing that with no proper background knowledge about the basics of the subject, you cannot write a research article. You will be stuck, especially if there is conflicting data. When an experienced researcher comes across conflicting data he knows how to handle it. First of all, he usually knows which of the conflicting information is most likely correct, however, this is not the case with a novice researcher. Therefore, reading enough about the topic is the key to avoid such a problem. Yet no one can read every essential detail about the topic because of time constraint or a hard deadline for the project. Under these circumstances a new researcher must realize that a trustworthy senior scientist is a senior scientist for a reason, therefore, there should be no hesitation in asking an expert in that field about the conflicting data. Remember, by writing and publishing a research article you are benchmarking yourself as an expert. How can you establish yourself as an expert if you don’t ask other experts and respect their opinion? Therefore, always consult experts of that topic to solve the problem such as conflicting data besides reading a lot of articles.

2- NOT SETTING UP A DEADLINE

One of the key factors of time management and goal setting is a deadline. In fact the world renowned goal setting expert Brian Tracy believes that a goal without a deadline is merely a wish. No one can argue that. Thus, you now know what to do, set up a deadline when you want to finish your research article. Now many students ask this question that how can we follow a deadline? We have done it in the past and it simply doesn’t work. Now let me tell you this that setting up a deadline is also a skill. Merely deciding a date in your mind is not enough. You need to write the deadline in a journal (hope you have a daily journal, if you don’t have a journal then stop reading this blog right now and go buy a journal). You should also hang a calendar on your wall in your room and the living room. You should also tell your friends or family about this deadline and ask them to remind you about the deadline. Our mind gets 60 thousand random thoughts each day, therefore, its impossible to remember the deadline without reminding yourself multiple times. Now what are you waiting for? Go write the deadline now!

3- BRAGGING ABOUT YOUR RESEARCH ARTICLE WITHOUT COMPLETING IT

One of my juniors wrote an outstanding article and showed it to his supervisor, the supervisor told him not to publish it because the article is really bad. Few years down the line this junior friend of mine found his own paper published under the name of that supervisor. This can happen when you brag about your research article prematurely.

I was like this junior too when I started my career as a researcher. I used to tell everyone what research project I am working on these days. However, with experience and time I learned that we should not discuss our research article with every Tom, Dick, and Harry until it’s completed and published. People don’t care about your article, some people will just discourage you or criticize you or some people will become envious and become your enemies.

Why are you inviting this trouble in your life? Someone rightly said that “work hard in silence and let your success do the talk”. The only people who need to hear about your research article are your sincere family or friends and the expert who is your mentor and is a trustworthy person. Not everyone is a trustworthy person you need to remember this and admit this hard reality.

Best

Dr. Hassaan Tohid