2013: the year in which I stop getting old and start learning to speak - Reverb12 Day 23

From Tennyson’s ‘In Memoriam’ – Henry Vitzelly, in “Christmas with the Poets” recommends the poem as the most appropriate way to end the year (Glasgow University Library Special Collections item Sp Coll Euing BD20-b.24).

I decided to write my answer to today’s Reverb12 prompt before dinner, so that I am not still awake at 1am thinking about it, unlike last night. That didn’t quite work out, but I’m still not writing this in the early hours, so it’s a win.

“Rope” by Ben Simpkins

Name three excuses — stories you tell yourself that are holding you back — that you are going to let go of in 2013.

From “I Can’t” to “I Can”, by Jess Fink

1) “I am not a good presenter/public speaker, so I should stick to writing instead of speaking” – I have been thinking about this one for a while, and my insistence that I’m not good at it makes me more nervous than I should be. Instead of panicking and trying to avoid presenting at conferences, I need to work on my presentation skills and get as much practice as possible.
2) “This person knows a lot more than me about the subject on which they’re lecturing, so any comments or questions I have will sound really stupid” – also known as Why I Am Quiet At Conferences. I can come up with good suggestions and useful recommendations, but I never feel that they are quite good enough. On the few occasions when I have managed to get myself to speak to someone who has just given a conference paper, it has been an enjoyable and interesting discussion.
3) “I’m too old to take on a PhD” – People have told me that one should only do a PhD if it is absolutely necessary to one’s career. I have no intention of becoming an academic lecturer (see points 1 and 2 above as some of the reasons why this is so). On the other hand, I want to work in rare books librarianship. The curators of some of my favourite collections do have a doctorate, and in discussions have recommended that a PhD could open the right doors for me. In the current economic climate, I am even less sure that it is the best path to take. But realistically, I’m not too old. Realistically, nobody is ever too old, I would think, if they’re researching and writing something that they really enjoy.

Reading back over my three statements above, I need to learn how to engage in a more positive and fruitful way with the academic community.

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