Category Archives: self-confidence

Feeling the Fear

Posted on 6 September 2020 by Athene Donald

Readers of the Guardian may, over the years, have had reason to dip into Oliver Burkeman’s columns. As he hangs up his metaphorical boots, he summarised what he had personally learned from the exercise of writing these ‘self-help’ articles. In … Continue reading →

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Laying Ghosts to Rest

Posted on 21 August 2017 by Athene Donald

Many years ago I was invited to give one of the keynote talks at a conference in the USA. I was  young and I was flattered. It was a Conference on Polymer Physics held on the east coast of America. … Continue reading →

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Faking It

Posted on 7 June 2015 by Athene Donald

I seem to have given a lot of talks recently in which the phrase ‘faking it’ sat at their heart. You will realise I am not referring to talks about protein aggregation, microscopy or other scientific subjects when the use … Continue reading →

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I Wish I’d Known Then What I Know Now

Posted on 11 February 2015 by Athene Donald

There are many questions which are easily posed, to which I don’t find answers come easily. One of these is ‘who inspired you?’ (answer: no one very obviously); or ‘why did you decide you wanted to study physics?‘ to which … Continue reading →

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Getting Away with It

Posted on 2 February 2014 by Athene Donald

Do you feel this phrase describes you as you go through your professional life? Do you feel as if you’re a fraud and whereas everyone else knows what they are doing or deserve the position they have attained, you don’t? … Continue reading →

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“Rigged”- a complex educational experience

Posted on 1 June 2011 by Steve Caplan

A few years back when I was trying to teach my children how to play chess, I came across a really great teaching aid. It was called: “Fritz and Chesster“. I am reminded of this program now because when the … Continue reading →

Posted in children, content, delivery, education, Hebron, home town advantage, judges, locals, logical flow, Modern Woodmen of America, Nebraska, oration, Research, rigged, science, self-confidence, small town, sour grapes, speech contest | Comments Off on “Rigged”- a complex educational experience

Sagacity or Self-Centredness?

Posted on 27 April 2011 by Athene Donald

What should one talk about when asked to talk about one’s life, career path and general advice to a group of young persons? I use that awkward term advisedly to cover the range of categories that encompass schoolchildren, students, postgrads … Continue reading →

Posted in advice, career progression, careers, saying no, Science Culture, self-confidence | Comments Off on Sagacity or Self-Centredness?