A scientist today would have to be an excellent “web spinner”. Here a clarification is perhaps due: under “web spinning” I mean networking – building and creating of networks and catching others in your “web” or network. As most researchers tend to be introverted, for them networking may prove even more challenging than making a brilliant scientific discovery.
I prefer focusing on my research rather than networking, which, unfortunately, one cannot escape from. Without it, there would be fewer opportunities to find a position or finances. Networking in a broad academic circle guarantees invitations to conferences and inclusion in collaboration projects.
Below I’ve included three examples of situations in which I could not have managed without the art of “web spinning”. Being not the best of communicators, I often don’t take the most optimal advantage of such situations, which means missed opportunities to make it in the international academic world. The first of the examples has to do with poster presentations, the second with keeping close to the leading scientists in your field, and the third with going to the pub with your colleagues.
Most large conferences feature not only traditional oral presentations but also poster presentations. A researcher displays his or her research on a poster and presents it during the poster session. A poster presentation usually involves standing next to the poster for an hour, sometimes for two, being prepared to answer the questions of anyone who takes interest in research. However, shifting weight from one foot to another with a forced smile on my face and waiting for people to take an interest in my poster is one of my least favourite pastimes.
At a recent conference in France, participants presenting their posters were handed a bottle of wine, which they were asked to pour out to guests interested in the poster. A waitress’s role proved even more difficult. I must confess that I couldn’t make it for more than ten minutes, even though my poster was excellent this time and I was very proud of both the research and its presentation. I slipped the almost full wine bottle on the first unoccupied table corner and, with a slight pang of guilt but huge relief, sneaked away.
Once I was at a conference in the US, with several leading experts in the field attending. I braced myself and approached a famous French researcher to compliment him on his paper. We struck a conversation, at the end of which I offered to take him on a hike in the local nature park. He gladly agreed and was excited about the chance to learn about the nature of the area. Over the course of the hike, we discussed potential collaboration projects, and by now, we have published several co-authored articles. This single brave networking move which took me a lot of courage proved hugely beneficial!
