Just came back from holidays and found yourself staring at your calendar that’s full of conferences? I can almost hear the inner debate you’re having. Instead of keeping this internal dialogue to yourself, Reese decided to ask this question out loud:
Should I go to every conference?
Dear Reese,
No. What are you? An olympic world record holder in breaking the space-time continuum? No, that’s what I thought. So hold your horses, sit down and evaluate where this FOMO (fear of missing out) comes from. Also, think about your potential carbon footprint; if you go to every single one of them, some overseas potentially, you could turn into Taylor Swift -joking, none of us can be her when it comes to CO2 emissions-. Seriously though, think about the physical and mental exhaustion. Maybe you are a social butterfly but even butterflies need to land sometime, or they risk burning out entirely.
As I always say, take a pen and paper, and write down what makes you think that you are missing out, check if you have the same attitude with other things. Prioritize the conferences that truly add value to your work (your interest) and well-being. Remember, it’s okay to skip some; you’re not missing out—you’re choosing what matters most.
Yours sincerely,
The Sassy Scientist
P.S. also how can you afford to go to all the conferences? do you have infinite funding? if so, spill the beans and tell us the secret to it
P.P.S. this drained my energy, just imagining it was enough for me to say no.
P.P.P.S. unless… you have a TARDIS hidden somewhere 😮
