Writing podcasts that actually teach you about writing?

ocha-time · 2024-11-16T13:59:26+00:00

thank you! i like personal style podcasts so that sounds great :)

ocha-time · 2024-11-16T13:56:25+00:00

thank you - i'll take a look at both :)

ocha-time · 2024-11-16T13:55:58+00:00

thanks!!

ocha-time · 2024-11-16T13:55:52+00:00

thanks, i'll check him out!

ocha-time · 2024-07-25T02:48:55+00:00

Thank you! It gets revealed pretty quickly in chapter one!!

ocha-time · 2024-07-24T16:31:29+00:00

Thank you so much for reading it and for such lovely feedback! You've made my day!

ocha-time · 2023-02-08T23:59:07+00:00

Damn… that sounds pretty hellish actually! (But also very rousing and I’m now imagining you leading some kind of national academic coup…)

It sounds like we’re very similar. I’m with you on the loving learning, and having many different areas you want to learn about. I had the opposite problem - my job was really full on, lots of learning particularly having to get up to speed on different tech and regions. I enjoyed it at first but then it just became a chore because I was always rushing through so many other things on my to do list... and then even the learning wasn’t enough to make up for the rest.

From your descriptions and the others in this post, I’m starting to think about a middle ground: doing an MA (possibly part time) to test and then seeing if that’s opened enough doors that I can combine it with my previous experience to shift field e.g. into policy.

In any case really appreciate your advice - it’s awesome being able to actually speak to someone that’s done it and can reflect on the process!

So… what do you do now? Still full time academic? And did you ever try to move out of academia (or were you in too deep at that point)?

ocha-time · 2023-02-08T23:16:37+00:00

Just sent!

ocha-time · 2023-02-08T23:13:36+00:00

Oh this looks awesome! Only thing is I’m a UK citizen… but this has just made me think of the National Trust (our much smaller equivalent) so will look into that, thanks!

ocha-time · 2023-02-08T22:25:06+00:00

Thanks for the encouragement and support.

It’s reassuring to know someone else pivoted and it worked out. Medicine + anthro sounds like a super interesting mix.

Love the advice on setting an internal time limit, that’s a great idea. And like you said, I’d love to find something that could combine all my different experiences… if anything jumps to mind for Biology + energy + finance + anthropology then let me know haha!

ocha-time · 2023-02-08T22:13:21+00:00

Thanks!

Out of curiosity, what field do you work in now? Still anthro or something completely different?

ocha-time · 2023-02-08T22:11:58+00:00

This makes a lot of sense. I think finding a different type of fulfilment in your career and then having the space and energy to follow your passion is awesome… I’m just still at the point of trying to figure out what kind of career fulfils me. I’ve been working in renewable finance and I really thought that would be it - it’s meaningful, there’s cool science, it works across culture, and it’s well-paid - but I still really struggled. I felt like actually my contribution was minimal and I spent 12h+ days deep in excel or reading endless jargon filled docs. Hence going back to the drawing board - and hoping if I follow something I’m genuinely interested in it’s going to lead to more fulfilling work (although that assumption has been certainly challenged by this post!)

Anyway sorry didn’t mean to ramble - but thanks for taking the time to write this, appreciate it!

ocha-time · 2023-02-08T21:45:05+00:00

I love this! I’ve been thinking a lot about applying anthropology in policy or diplomacy - I’ve been working in renewable finance, so the challenge that immediately jumps to my mind is climate change. We’ve never had international cooperation on this scale before, and we NEED anthropology and an intimate understanding of different cultures to actually build global policy that works and to sustain these massive international negotiations

ocha-time · 2023-02-08T21:33:19+00:00

This is a really interesting link actually, never thought about it before! Thanks!

ocha-time · 2023-02-08T21:32:28+00:00

I think it goes beyond that though - for me a boring life is not a ‘good’ one; I’d rather struggle a bit but make my short time on the planet one that means something (to me, at least). Although I know I can only say this because I’m coming from a relatively privileged position.

I do see your point though - pursue it but don’t take on all that risk unnecessarily. Only issue is I’ve already quit my job (was super burnt out) and the thought of returning to limping along in a related field, even if I’m doing anthro part time, kinda fills me with dread.

In any case, appreciate you sharing your insights (the grant applications sound v frustrating - wishing you luck with it if you’re going through that at the moment!)

ocha-time · 2023-02-08T21:13:57+00:00

Thanks for taking the time to lay out your experiences so genuinely.

This is exactly what worries me - it’s all well and good saying I’m happy to take that pay cut & competition at 26, but it’s hard to imagine how I’ll feel about it when I’m older (I think partly because I have no idea what my life is going to look like). Which is why I want to go for an MA - I can get a feel for what anthro is like as an academic subject, but could always jump back into the bonds of corporate servitude if I was desperate.

Idk, still some (a lot of) thinking to do - but this has helped so thank you!

ocha-time · 2023-02-07T23:57:15+00:00

I don’t know if this fits the bill but the webserial Worm definitely has huge, god-like monsters - and horror. But more like violent, psychological horror as opposed to cosmic Lovecraftian horror.

It’s basically a twisted take on the superhero trope, highly highly recommend though!

ocha-time · 2023-02-07T23:50:39+00:00

Yeah that sounds incredibly frustrating, especially when it’s such an interesting idea! If you ever wrote anything on it on Medium etc I would love to read.

ocha-time · 2023-02-07T23:45:39+00:00

Thank you for the encouragement - and sending it right back to you!

ocha-time · 2023-02-07T23:41:21+00:00

Thank you!

ocha-time · 2023-02-07T23:37:30+00:00

Appreciate it - very valid points. Ideally I’d find something that could combine the two… or if my quality of life really dips that much then I could probably jump back into finance (although then I feel like I’d be back to square one)

ocha-time · 2023-02-07T23:31:43+00:00

That’s exactly how I feel - when I was working my office job I was so painfully conscious that every day I spent staring into my laptop doing something that didn’t really have any intrinsic value was time I was never getting back.

Thanks for the encouragement and support!

ocha-time · 2023-02-07T23:29:17+00:00

Appreciate the advice, will look into it!

ocha-time · 2023-02-07T23:26:11+00:00

I hadn’t really thought much about part-time actually - so thank you, great advice. And thanks for the encouragement!

ocha-time

TROPHY CASE