Read on Twitter
I got a job rejection today for a lecturer position. An email like this would devastate me two months ago. I'd question my job and my life choices. I'd wallow in the despair so common on the academic job market, of which I wandered for years... but not this time.
Today, I got that email sitting in my office working from home at my new job. I'm full-time, paid adequately for my time, skill, and effort, and I still use all my academic training. I just do so outside of the classroom. Academia is now merely a side hustle.
These rejections no longer dictate my worth (not that they ever did). They aren't that patronizing pat on the head that assures me I'll get picked next time if I just try a little harder, be a little smarter, etc. Now, I see these emails and smile.
I got my first paycheck today. My first legit, big girl paycheck since graduating in 2018 and the first time my PhD has a tangible payoff. Up until now, it was a fancy piece of paper that gave me some smarts and let me teach intro college writing classes for peanuts.
This isn't a brag. This is a call to action. You can do more with your degree and you deserve so much more than academia gives. There are things way better than tenure, and you could be the lucky one to find out what that looks like for you.
Hey, this isn't for everyone, but maybe you get this.
Look beyond the ivory tower. Get out. Run if you have to. Don't look back. You just might find what you're really looking for.
Look beyond the ivory tower. Get out. Run if you have to. Don't look back. You just might find what you're really looking for.
Oh, and I just deleted that email. But this is how I should have replied...
"New life, who dis?"
"New life, who dis?"
