This is my 4th year in the PhD part. I used to work 10 hours a day Monday through Friday and maybe half a day each on Saturday and Sunday. My days would be pretty packed and I would be at the bench more often than in front of my computer. Now, I've reduced my work day to 9 hours during MF and maybe a quick drop in (2 hours) on the weekends. I also have less to do during the day so I'm at my desk writing a manuscript or reading some med school books to remind myself of what I've forgot. My boss tells me that I should be working harder, but I honestly don't feel like I have that much to do. I don't want to get involved in new projects because I most likely won't finish it, and I don't have the motivation to. The paper that I'm working on now would probably end up in the same journal if I had put in a lot more work into it. Does my PI have a point in that I'm slacking off, or does he simply want to get more juice out of me?
PI thinks I'm slacking, but...
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Bosses can suck. Find out what your PI means by more time: specifically, what kind of experiments your boss would envision you doing in your extra time.
My boss thought I could do more Immunofluorescence with more time, so I prioritized IFAs and that made him happier.
My boss thought I could do more Immunofluorescence with more time, so I prioritized IFAs and that made him happier.
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Although your PI is your primary advisor, he/she isn't supposed to be treating you like a slave, nor is your PI the only person who's supposed to decide what work you're supposed to be doing.
I don't know how your school works, but at mine we had to have our dissertation proposal approved by the end of our third year. Do you have a clear dissertation proposal? Do you have a dissertation committee picked out? If not, then I'd say you should figure out whether this is required by your program, when it's supposed to occur, and get that ball rolling. Even if it's not required (I can hardly imagine that, but who knows?) you should try to informally get the same thing going on.
If you do have an approved dissertation proposal, or once you have this, that basically serves as your contract. Many PIs will require that you do additional work for them beyond your dissertation proposal, but your fallback position should be something like, "I'm happy to work on this, but I need to prioritize my dissertation research so that I can graduate." Another tactic is to say, "If I take on this project, can I take out ________ from my dissertation proposal?" Be careful in using these negotiation strategies--some PI's will not like it--but whether they like it or not these are valid points to make.
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Does your PI think that you're slacking off because you're leaving work earlier, or because you're spending less time at the bench?
With respect to the first point - reducing your work day by one hour may not seem like a big shift to you (especially if you are doing some writing from home), but it may be noticeable to your PI. Many students arrive at lab before their PIs, and leave after them. If your new 9 hour day means that you are leaving at the same time as your PI, and he/she may view this as slacking. Shifting your hours around could fix that problem entirely.
As for the second point - I would expect most PIs to realize that writing grants/papers and setting up presentations is a large (but necessary) time suck that develops once you actually have something to present. So, maybe your PI isn't upset that you're writing - maybe she/he is just wondering if you're writing hard enough. So - are you writing hard enough? I know some great students who have a tendency to slack and procrastinate as soon as it's manuscript time. If you are one of them, you need to set writing deadlines for yourself and make progress. On the other hand, if you are working your but off, you need to make that clear to your PI. Perhaps you should make a point to send him/her drafts and new references that you find while you're writing. Even if your PI never reads them, at least it's proof that you're doing something.
Alternately, you could limit the med school review to your time outside of lab. Although it is relevant to your life, it isn't relevant to your boss's work, and it may be a cause of resentment.
With respect to the first point - reducing your work day by one hour may not seem like a big shift to you (especially if you are doing some writing from home), but it may be noticeable to your PI. Many students arrive at lab before their PIs, and leave after them. If your new 9 hour day means that you are leaving at the same time as your PI, and he/she may view this as slacking. Shifting your hours around could fix that problem entirely.
As for the second point - I would expect most PIs to realize that writing grants/papers and setting up presentations is a large (but necessary) time suck that develops once you actually have something to present. So, maybe your PI isn't upset that you're writing - maybe she/he is just wondering if you're writing hard enough. So - are you writing hard enough? I know some great students who have a tendency to slack and procrastinate as soon as it's manuscript time. If you are one of them, you need to set writing deadlines for yourself and make progress. On the other hand, if you are working your but off, you need to make that clear to your PI. Perhaps you should make a point to send him/her drafts and new references that you find while you're writing. Even if your PI never reads them, at least it's proof that you're doing something.
Alternately, you could limit the med school review to your time outside of lab. Although it is relevant to your life, it isn't relevant to your boss's work, and it may be a cause of resentment.
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I'm sad to see the PhD comic strip is gone.
Your advisor will never think you work hard enough. So, work as hard as you think you need to work and at least one of you will be happy.
Your advisor will never think you work hard enough. So, work as hard as you think you need to work and at least one of you will be happy.
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I am thinking the same. For the time being, I'll refrain from reading non-lab related books when my boss is around but keep the same work hours.
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For some reason the page didn't load right yesterday, I guess. Now they're back. I love that comic strip so much.
Seriously, though, work enough to get things done and then that is enough. Spend time with your family and on other things you like.
Seriously, though, work enough to get things done and then that is enough. Spend time with your family and on other things you like.
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Hah. Seems just about right to me.
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