R3ciprocity.com - Prof David Maslach: Innovation; Research Life; Striving Towards Happiness

In business and engineering, we aim for #efficiency by achieving the best outcome with limited resources. This involves focusing on one goal, such as maximizing profit or utility, and using available resources to achieve that goal.

However, many things in life that bring us joy are not efficient, such as spending time with family, celebrating holidays, and giving hugs.

Think about how difficult it is to #smile on a given day. Expending resources to smile is terrible use of your available energy.

One could argue that the reason we smile is to gain efficiencies in other areas, such as social capital. However, it feels “icky” to say the reason I smile is because I get some sort of #transaction or efficiency out of it.

These theories of boiling simple pleasures down to quantitative metrics just don’t have face validity.

A robot might smile to maximize it’s social capital, but I don’t.

These activities may seem like a waste of resources, as they require energy and time that could be used for more productive purposes. It's important to remember that we don't always need to maximize efficiency in every aspect of our lives.

Being inefficient has been an ongoing lesson for me as somebody that is deeply ingrained within the #engineering and #business subculture.

#PhDs and #researchers pour countless hours into their research, but unfortunately, much of their work often goes unnoticed. It's not uncommon for a PhD student to spend years working on a project only to have it rejected through the review process. This can be a frustrating and overwhelming experience.

In fact, many PhD students feel unappreciated, and it's easy to see why. The workload and expectations of a PhD can be daunting, and the #research process can be filled with failure and unpredictability.

To make matters worse, some people don't understand the value of research. I once had someone dismiss my work as a PhD student and told me that I was "publishing in obscurity". Comments like these can be hurtful and demotivating. However, it's important to remember that your work is important, and there are people who appreciate it.

If you're doing research and you are feeling #unappreciated, know that you're not alone. It's natural to feel frustrated and anxious when much of your hard work seems to go unnoticed.

What you're doing is important, and it matters.

Don't let negative comments or rejection discourage you. Keep pushing forward, and know that there are people who appreciate your work and your dedication.

So, to all the #PhDs out there, let me say this: you matter, and what you do is important. Your hard work and dedication are not going unnoticed.

Keep striving, and know that there is at least one person that appreciates you. And, that is me.

Being able to delay, a purchase or action is an extremely powerful strategic choice. We often think about action, but perhaps a more powerful tool is in action. The binary choice to actually do some thing or not.

The outcomes we see today are not just the result of our efforts alone but rather a culmination of #decisions and choices made by others.

The school we attend, the career we pursue, and the life we lead are all shaped by the decisions our parents and the people around them made in the past.

Your grandparents and their grandparents affected you.

Recognize that your outcomes are not independent of others. Our #success is not just the result of our hard work but is also influenced by the social and economic systems that we are a part of.

So is your #failure.

Be mindful of the choices you make, and the choices that are made on your behalf.

You are not as much as a success as you think you are.

And, you are not a failure either.

Working is never easy, no matter what particular task that you’re actually working on. From the outside world, it might seem fun and exciting, but from the inside, it’s always a challenge to get up and get going at every single thing that you work on.

The goal then is to simply try every day. Get up and get going smile and consistently. Keep trying. Keep knocking at the wall. Little steps are what actually lead you to the end.

Our general understanding of business and economics generally is quite in need of improvement. However, it’s unlikely to happen anytime soon as much of this desire to understand these fields requires the individual learner to take the time to learn it. It’s not the availability of information that’s the problem.

most will not want to resonate with what you’re saying, but you have to find those backs will match with your style.

It’s not about trying to connect with everybody, it’s about getting one person to understand where you’re coming from.

You have to actually will it to happen. Put on your resources in it too create the world that you actually are thinking about.

It requires unbelievable determination, but you can create the world that you like.

You are good enough just as you are. You don't have to conform to the outside world’s expectations or try to please others to feel worthy or #validated.

The most important thing is to be true to yourself, and embrace your unique qualities and strengths.

Many people get caught up in the trap of impression management and sacrificing their #authenticity. This can lead to feelings of anxiety, insecurity, and a loss of identity.

I have done this, and it is not a great feeling.

When you start to feel lost or uncertain about yourself, it's important to shift your focus back to who you are and what you stand for.

How others #perceive you has little consequence on you.

Instead, focus on being the best version of yourself.

Trust that the right people and #opportunities will come into your life when you stay true to your values and beliefs.

Remember, you are enough just as you are. you

We should improve the #academic peer review process to align it better with the incentives of participants.

Currently, important roles such as reviewing, friendly reviews, and editing articles are not given enough credit and remain hidden from the public eye. As a reviewer, I know firsthand that it can take several days to complete an article review.

However, this work is not always recognized as productive, which can lead to us being viewed as unproductive. This is unfortunate because these invisible contributions are crucial to the advancement of our field.

Peer #review doesn’t work without reviewers.

While some may argue that these contributions could lead to editorship opportunities, it is often the case that these positions are given to individuals with higher status within the academic community.

This leaves those with lower status doing a considerable amount of work for little recognition.

We should make the academic peer review process more transparent to encourage wider and more rigorous participation.

The idea that people participate for intrinsic rewards and reciprocity may not be enough to motivate individuals to #participate and be kind in the review process.