Letter to My Younger Self: Dr. Evanna Gleason
The “Letter to My Younger Self” series features our College of Science researchers who share a love of science, mathematics, and technology, who are in different stages of their careers, sharing with their “young selves” words of encouragement, glimpses into the future, and wisdom that can only be delivered from hindsight.
Our series continues with Dr. Evanna Gleason, professor and department chair of the LSU Department of Biological Sciences.
Dear Evanna,
You are in high school, and you are getting your first glimpse of what it might be like to be a scientist. You are an assistant to Dr. JoAnn Dombrowski, who teaches anthropology and evolution. Your job is to help in the classroom, but it is her office and prep room that fascinate you. It is full of samples of plants and animals, all amazing things to ponder. You also take an anatomy and physiology class, taught by Mr. Pogue, the football coach. Okay, maybe the explanations of muscle contraction and bones as levers involve passing a football, but you get it. Organisms are machines that do wonderful things, and the closer you look, the more fascinating the machine gets. Notions of your particular areas of interest come later, but for now, you know that biology is your thing. It is a long way from you to me, but we are fundamentally the same person. Here are few lessons learned along the way that I want to share.
Becoming a scientist will be a journey. Recognize that you will never stop learning. Reading, writing, speaking and mentoring are skills that will always require hard work but will continue to evolve. You will also learn to know yourself, your strengths and weaknesses. You will read an evaluation in graduate school stating that you are diligent and hard-working. Aside from feeling vaguely insulted, you also know that this is, in fact, untrue. I mean yes, you can work hard, but this is hardly your defining characteristic. You are creative, and science rewards creativity. The lesson learned: Do NOT let others define who you are, and be careful how you characterize others, your colleagues, your students.
Brace yourself, you are going to have to learn to fail. Failure will come in numerous packages, your ideas will fail to gain traction, experiments will fail. You will apply for 50 jobs and get none, but then get one. Not all failures end in failure. You will pour heart and brain and soul into your research, and a reviewer might respond with a blunt rejection. That feels like a failure, but once that horrible feeling of rejection subsides, get back to work. Argue, reason, build a case, and you will prevail. Importantly, don’t forget to celebrate the victories!
I know you, self-doubt will always be at your side. Use it wisely. It seems like a negative to doubt yourself, but a little self-doubt can come in handy. Tamp it down when it keeps you from trying new things or accepting challenges, and do not give anyone else permission to engage your self-doubt. Use it to your advantage when a nagging doubt makes you repeat that experiment or practice that talk for your dog just one more time.
A career as a scientist and professor will be rewarding in ways that you will not anticipate. Mentoring graduate students is chief among these. There is no rule book and one size does not fit all, but it is a challenge worth engaging in. Not only do you have the enjoyment of helping students develop into independent thinkers, but you are contributing to the next generation of colleagues. You draw and daydream about being an artist. You chose another path, but there is more art in science than you might think. You will make figures that require balance and clarity. You will make posters for meetings that must get other scientists to stop to take a look, then stay to hear your scientific story. You become a neuroscientist, so there will be lots images of neurons as a part of your research, and you will never stop thinking that they are beautiful.
Try not to worry, you are going to have a good life. Your work will be fulfilling, there will be excellent dogs, and you will have a remarkable family. Your family…now that is a whole other letter.