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  • CAREER COLUMN

What it means to be a successful male academic

Prioritizing family life has earned me respect in my field — and my research has improved, too, says Dritjon Gruda.
By
  1. Dritjon Gruda

    1. Dritjon Gruda is an organizational behaviour researcher at the Católica Porto Business School and the Research Centre in Management and Economics at the Universidade Católica Portuguesa.

How do you become successful in academia? At numerous international conferences, I’ve heard eminent scholars emphasize the necessity of prioritizing work above everything else, including family and children. One memorable instance occurred in 2018, at a large international conference in my field. At a session for postdocs and junior faculty members about obtaining tenure and building successful careers, someone on the panel advocated for meticulously scheduling personal life, including sex with romantic partners, to boost work productivity. Other advice included minimizing time with your children to allow you to revise and resubmit manuscripts. These tips were alarmingly well-received by many of the 300 young academics, both male and female, in attendance. I left the session questioning whether I was the only one who found the advice unsettling.

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doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-024-02105-1

This is an article from the Nature Careers Community, a place for Nature readers to share their professional experiences and advice. Guest posts are encouraged.

Competing Interests

The author declares no competing interests.

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