December 1st, 2016 | The Course at Genetics.

The Course at Genetics.

These days, I was thinking a lot about all the factors that hindered my development during the first three years of my PhD. Although I have a lot done, it might have always been better. Every time I deliberate on this topic, I come to the same conclusion: the biggest problem I had was being driven by fear. I entered my PhD track account online and found out that actually, I have 13 courses completed. Thirteen… I should have taken three courses and for the rest of the time keep on publishing articles. 

But of course, I listened to the wrong advisors and I was thinking: am I good enough? Do I know enough? Maybe I should take this or that course, and learn more first? As a result, those who risked and dived straight into the publication process without taking any courses, not only have publications now but also made themselves a lot of contacts by asking around for help. So, by taking courses you lose double.

Therefore, my resolution for the times to come is as follows: to stop fearing, and jump straight into problems as they are. The new occasion just emerged: genetics ahead. Funny enough, this is a blank space in my education because so far, I never completed a proper course in genetics. At school, it was always somewhere at the end of the textbook, and we never managed to get to the end of the book during the school year, so I never embraced even the basic concepts of it. 

I also have some peculiar phobia of genetics as a discipline, since it sounds like such a definite description of a human being, which you cannot influence – you can only passively read your genetic code and draw conclusions, but you cannot change it. And now, finally, the time has come: I need to learn some genetics. And I have a strong resolution to do it without opening a single textbook.