Thread by @usnehal

Had a fun time talking about #leadership in #STEM (at any stage of career), #BlackExcellence #WomenInSTEM #DEI #DiversityandInclusion to a range of students and faculty at @tennesseetech. Thanks for the invitation @JosephCSlater. Look forward to building further on this.

Talked about ways to take on community level leadership roles to develop skills in acquiring funding, managing a budget, team building, managing people, executing.

Know what you are good at and balance the rest with your team. Don’t try to be it all.

https://twitter.com/usnehal/status/1257752517196288002

Particularly on #Twitter, being overt about terms like #bias or #BLM or #racism can result in blowback. That does not mean what you said was wrong rather others may have insecurity or have work to do. Manage your energy as an advocate. Avoid burnout.

In early career, is fine to keep your head down & focus on getting work done. It is okay to let allies or more senior people engage in the politics #Leadership has many forms - be strategic in how you navigate spaces. Now, I sometimes do engage very directly & risk blowback.

Most importantly, I started with identifying personal strengths and your mission or your “why” - why did you invest you time and talent into higher education or your chosen field of study? Communicate with passion
#leadership #STEM #BlackExcellence #WomenInSTEM #womeninleadership

No talk would be complete without acknowledging: higher levels of pigmentation can trigger people to perceive you as “aggressive” if you communicate directly (or at all). These biases exist - it is not fair yet a reality we must navigate. #BlackExcellence #WomenInSTEM

Had to delay from #BlackHistoryMonth due to my mother’s passing. I hated to not deliver then but @JosephCSlater wisely nudged me to reschedule - he was right. At that time I needed all energy for my mom & grief.

= Be #flexible & #antifragile to be effective in completing goals.

Too many people see #DEI or #DiversityandInclusion as a zero sum game where they feel they are getting crowded out or resent someone they see as fulfilling a ✅

..whereas we touched upon the collaborative and win-win aspects and ways to signal that with words.
#leadership #STEM

You know if I gave a talk I advised to use vetted, validated, credible information.

On engagement, there is a spectrum of risk - you have to assess your risk tolerance for posts ...or anything. That is a #leadership #mindset of #riskmanagement - you intentionally select risk.

There are stages to career from student or independent contributor, manager, #leadership. The last leap is a true #mindset change. It requires creating something that does not exist, often, and getting others to fund it or follow down a path. Try to cultivate that mindset early.

We also talked about how to network & connect when things are virtual and when if things do not go back fully to the old ways pre-#pandemic. How does the #elevatorspeech be applied then? In fact people can be MORE willing to conduct via a brief Zoom call. How do you pitch self?

And any pitch is about communicating your vision, value, mission. I destigmatize terms “brand” or “selling” - it is a marketplace of ideas. You are talented and have things to offer. How do you get “found” by algorithms or people? #leadership #STEM #blackexcellence #WomenInSTEM

How do you craft your bio or profile according to your talents, strengths, passions, goals and targeted to desired audience? How to approach “jargon”? Used real world examples as better way to show - reduces the mental barrier. #leadership #STEM #WomenInSTEM #BlackExcellence

Much longer thread on #SciComm, #misinformation #disinformation, #conspiracy, pitfalls of poor #quality #online #survey #data. This underscores the need to navigate carefully because there’s an increasing number of people online who are simply not logical or grounded in reality.

https://twitter.com/usnehal/status/1381577589203025920

Loved the ability to share liberating & creative approaches from my time at @mit @MITSloan @MITSloanFellows at @tennesseetech #professionalism is often defined too narrowly. Instead, take strategic risks to #communicate for #impact. #WomenInSTEM #BlackExcellence #STEM #leadership

https://twitter.com/usnehal/status/1265425020551077888