Biggest regret of my life? 4 things I learned after quitting my academic job!

If you were wondering 'where are they now' about the people who quit during the Great Resignation - this video is for you. I go through four things I learned after I quit. This is a follow up to my 'I quit' video.

// Make sure you subscribe to my channel to see new videos about careers, productivity, and work life. I'm thrilled you're here!

// About me
🌸Hi, I’m Cheryl. I want everyone to stop doing things they hate.
I’m an organisational psychologist with a PhD in (in)equality at work.
Leave a comment with any videos you’d like to see to improve your university or work life!

TIMESTAMPS
00:00 Introduction
00:39 Background on Me
01:05 Money
02:40 Toxic People Are Everywhere
04:05 Academia is Confusing AF
06:40 You can do it, babeh
07:36 The Media and My Attitude

Be sure to like and subscribe so we can figure it all out together!

[servicekid]

Toxic people are everywhere, but in academia i) being toxic gets you promoted ii) in academia tenured staff don’t get fired for being toxic

[_giona]

Love this! After 8 years working for international organisations, I quit and after two years I am now working with an organisation composed of 99% academics. I have found the egos, narrow mindedness and unwillingness to be a part of something bigger than their own individual worlds quite shocking.
At first I was feeling so wowed to be a part of it, now I just feel like these geeks fell off the pedestals I had placed them on.
I honestly feel like the world is a mess ‘cos the smart people we are looking up to for solutions are involved in a totally different game all together. We need solutions and they are looking at having one citation more than their nemesis.
😂this world is complex.

[PreetBanerjee]

Refreshing to see someone opening up about this - thanks for sharing!

[seansanb]

Thanks for making this honest, helpful video. I've been working in academia for almost two decades now but am seriously looking to exit and do something else. The only thing I like about it is being able to open the minds of young people.

[ms.saiyan]

Thank you for being transparent about your thoughts after moving on from academia!

[somo_nb]

Amazing video as always Cheryl. I’m in academia and feeling like quitting every day 😂 Thank you so much for sharing your thoughts and experience in this video. I enjoy watching all your videos. See you in next video hehe.Som

[monochromios]

New follower conquered. I really love the way you explain your ideas. I left my 20-year job last year; it was no longer sustainable. It was the best decision I could have taken. Thank you for sharing

[juliaxo]

Always so proud of you and inspired by your willingness to talk about this stuff!

[neurosciencebeyond]

Thank you for the great content! Very insightful video!

[light-yime]

I totally agree with you and remember you’re not your job ! Corporate world most of the time do not care about the academic researches and it’s outcome the way you think, they are only interested in parts of it only when it’s helping their motto and the end result which is profit. That could be the reason why it’s highly guarded. Honestly, the corporate world and various government agencies has taken enough advantages of the Psychological and sociological field, only to push their ideas and profit margins which makes me so sad! Narcissists are everywhere and you have to face them or they run you out just remember not to make friends at work and share your ideas and goals outside of work related topics. Co workers are not your friends only in rare occasions true friendship can happens. Please don’t stay in a place when they don’t match your personality or your values especially when it comes to teachings.

[Albacore]

While I have a blend of attended schooling and obtained a Psyd at a non-name brand school, it’s hard to believe misunderstanding in academia of what it means to be published?

I learned something new! Thanks for sharing.

[Aamirphd]

oh my word this is the exact video I need I am in the same position I left academia 18 months ago too I would love to pick your brain more if possible! I have so many questions that have been pressing on my mind

incredible useful and important video!

[neskel]

Just a quick message to let you know that these videos are being helpful to me. On my journey to leave academia.

[os]

After two Masters (Msc in behavioral ecology-bioacoustics in frogs and neuroethology -neuro motor control in electric fish) and a PhD (in neurobiology-multimodal integration during learning and memory in bees) I’m done with academia (I’m trying to find a secure job… kind of difficult more difficult after all a saturated job market) I want to apply my data analysis skills (statistics, R, python, SQL, excel, SPSS, tableau), knowledge (biology, neuroscience, experimental design) and communication skills (writing papers, grants, teaching) in a industry… and help in solving problems with immediate effects on people… any advice?

[sterlingherrera]

I just finished my masters degree last month, and though I have applied for open positions in universities in roles that seem interesting to me, I am not set on academia at all like many peers are (academia is standard for my fields of study).

Part of it, and something I have seen discussed in videos similar to yours, is the hard fact that academia is essentially a pyramid scheme that is legal for some reason. Adjuncts and grad students in particular do 95% of the work at a university all while making wages fit for living out of their car. Meanwhile, they must pour money into the universities for degrees and the simple possibility of maybe advancing to upper echelons. Sounds familiar, no? While this is happening, most of the actual money in universities is funneled to administrative bulk, presidents, deans, etc., and excessive spending on supplies that is tied up in contracts with private companies.

This is not a sustainable model for education and eventually all the academics who haven’t drank the exploitative kool-aid will leave for something at least marginally better (though the non-academic sector is just as exploitative in somewhat different ways).

[ACArchangels]

How about having something in your name in academia vs industry? In academia you have your own public appearance through papers and conference talks, while in industry, in most cases, you are just behind the scenes.

[lien-chinwei]

Thank you for pointing out money as the first factor. I have burden to support my parents and my spouse and kids. Also, the time spend should be translated well into your compensation.

[kubetail]

I was not naive about toxic people and long hours when I started looking for industry jobs, but I did underestimate how I would be treated because of my degrees. After several years of working part-time and applying to jobs, I finally got an entry-level engineering job. Basically, people at work treat me like I am Albert Einstein, or I am just book-smart and have no real-world experience. I do not think any work is below me, I really like working with my hands, but that's all they will let me do. The projects they have me on are off the clock for training and learning experience.

I recently came across an interview a Howard Stern interview did with comedian Jerry Seinfeld. Seinfeld basically said life is torture and to find the torture that you are comfortable with. So I have been thinking of going back to academia. My graduate school experience was so rough I would hate myself if I put my students through that. To be fair, quite a bit of was not the fault of my advising faculty. Our department was the target of some pretty corrupt politics. I think one of my co-chairs, who was actually the subject matter expert of my dissertation, had a stroke due to the stress of the whole ordeal.

[guillaumegiroux]

You are super smart, but I would also love to « down to earth » things like gardening. Good luck for the rest!

[sundayaniefor]

Very interesting video. You are right.