• Question: Was there ever a moment in your scientific life that you were afraid?

    Asked by harrystyles to Craig, Devon, Marta, Natalie, Nicholas on 6 Mar 2017.
    • Photo: Nicholas Younger

      Nicholas Younger answered on 6 Mar 2017:

      Yes. This morning actually. I had to present my research to my whole building for the first time since I became a researcher and it was terrifying. But it went well and everyone had interesting questions and liked what I was doing.

      There are loads of scary moments in science because a lot of the time the only person responsible for you and your work…is you! And it can be scary taking risks and knowing that if they work you will look great, and if they don’t you will look stupid – but that fear makes your produce your best work and grow as a person.

    • Photo: Natalie Doig

      Natalie Doig answered on 6 Mar 2017:

      Yes – many times. I don’t think that being afraid is a bad thing – when you do something new and important it is often quite scary, but then you have achieved something and the next time you won’t be so worried. Being outside of your own comfort zone is good because it means you are pushing yourself to do more.

    • Photo: Marta Varela

      Marta Varela answered on 6 Mar 2017:

      I think so… When I was doing my PhD, lots of my colleagues gave up or were told they were not good enough and and should go away. I was always afraid that I would be the next to be told to leave and wasn’t even being able to focus on my work properly because of that.

      I had to rely on my friends and family for encouragement and in the end it was all fine. It can be very hard not to give up when other people like your teachers tell you you can’t do something, but you have to remember that you’re in charge of your own life and that no one knows what’s best for you better than yourself.

    • Photo: Craig O'Hare

      Craig O'Hare answered on 16 Mar 2017:

      Yes.

      There are times in any career path that can be scary. For me moving away from Ireland was very scary at first as I was going to a place where I knew no one.

      More specifically it can be daunting to present your own ideas in meetings at first. Sometimes you just think that maybe you’ve just misunderstood the problem and that your solutions might not work. It’s easy to fall victim to self doubt. A lot of scientists suffer from this but it does get easier with time and practice.

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