Why boundary-setting matters, now more than ever.

Welcome to the 21st Interdisciplinary Thinking!

I wanted to use this newsletter to make things more accessible. I want to highlight some incredible people to share their stories to elevate social mobility. 

This is a personal blog of sorts which I want to explore more themes including neurodiversity, at work and inclusion and other interesting things.

Very excited to join a dear friend, Ruth Weir, who is a Senior Programme Officer at UCL Innovation & Enterprise. We bonded over a long chat on neurodiversity and business, during a course I did whilst doing my first classes at UCL as a PhD student, and the rest is history. Read more about her incredible journey from neuroscience to enterprise, and her passion for supporting those with autism.

Fun stuff:

A briefing report from Julie’s Bicycle on how cultural organisations can ‘price in’ carbon in net-zero commitments. This was a really interesting read.

Wired on the productivity paradox. From PCs to smartphones, office tech has always promised to make us more productive. But time and again, it's come with unexpected side effects. What do you think?

Office Vibe on why empathy in the workplace matters. Get it right when it matters most. I thought this was a very interesting read.

The Guardian explores the dark side of personality tests. Have you ever used an MBTI test? I have previously and found it useful to understand my strengths, however, always take it with a pinch of salt!

The FT named Bulb, a UK green energy scale-up, as Europe’s fastest-growing company! I really love Bulb, their branding is really epic.

Amazon Launchpad innovation competition launches with €100k prize.

LinkedIn has announced plans to launch its own gig marketplace called Marketplace, similar to Upwork and Fiverr. Having been a digital nomad for several years and doing the whole freelance project as a main hustle before, I think this is quite interesting.

Grammarly discusses the five top ways you can keep your emails short and sweet!

My dear friend Sophie Thorne joined the Women Who Create on their most recent episode! Go listen here! And if you are thirsty for more, go check her one-page strategy here!

The Scientific American investigates whether narcissists are more likely to experience impostor syndrome. There is a surprising link between narcissism and impostor syndrome.

The secret to powerful email signatures.

Stop telling women they have imposter syndrome.

You can cook more exciting dishes in your microwave than you might imagine. 

Make some flowcharts. 

Spotlight on: Being mindful of your communication style and why boundary setting matters.

Both of these things are incredibly important!

They can also have negative impacts on others if we aren't careful...

The first thing to say here is that those individuals who utilise negative communication modes are probably not aware they are doing it. The use of passive-aggressive behaviour doesn't mean the person is bad, there can be a variety of reasons why a person chooses to go down this route of communication. However, when you are on the receiving end, it can be really hard to process, especially at the moment it happens!

So why do people use this method of communication? Well, often they don't want to be direct. Alternatively, we also often see a case where people can't express themselves. At times, we see people afraid of conflict using this as a method of choice.

Within the workplace, this communication style can significantly impact a team’s or person’s productivity and collaboration abilities. We are very quickly coming to the first anniversary of working from home due to the pandemic. We are more digitally connected than ever before, but more isolated.

Why employing boundary setting is vital

It matters at all levels of your life and in all places

Yet is often overlooked, so why does it matter?

Boundaries are vital. It is essential to have boundaries in place because they set the basic guidelines of how you want to be treated. Setting boundaries isn’t selfish, it’s self-care.

Having them in place allows us to:

1. Communicate our needs and desires clearly and succinctly without fear of repercussions.
2. Set limits so that others don’t take advantage of us or are allowed to hurt us.
3. Practice self-care and self-respect.

Yet it remains something hard to put in place.

At some point in your life, you probably put other's needs or feelings before your own.

Have you ever felt guilty when you don't help someone, or you said no? Well, that was based on fear, a fear of not being liked.

The other thing that is super important here, is the power of no.

The art of saying no is the single biggest blocker for a lot of people.

This Week: An Interview with Ruth Weir, Senior Programme Officer for Entrepreneurship at UCL.

I had the pleasure of meeting Ruth Weir at a session UCL hosted on building enterprise skills for PhD students. We bonded about all things neurodiversity and she is a powerhouse with a background in neuroscience.

She completed her PhD in Neuroscience from UCL and then moved to California to work at the world-renowned UC Davis MIND Institute. Here she studied the neuropathology of autism and continues to have a deep interest in autism. Now back at UCL, she sits within the Innovation & Enterprise department. Her focus is on helping PhD students to discover and develop their entrepreneurial knowledge, skillset and mindset.

The autism community is still very dear to her heart and she regularly provides tutoring to secondary school students with autism. In her spare time, Ruth will either be found swimming, cycling or running in training for her next triathlon or marathon.

Jess Gosling: Your background is in neuroscience with a focus on autism. What does neurodiversity mean to you? What made you want to study this?

Ruth Weir: Neurodiversity is about recognising, accepting and utilising the differences that make us all unique. While studying for my biochemistry degree I took a module on neuroscience where I learnt that our brains account for just 2% of our body weight but use 20% of our energy resources. Furthermore, our brains are 100% responsible for how we feel, act, think and ultimately navigate the world around us. I became particularly interested in neurobehaviour and completed my PhD at UCL researching ADHD, however during this time I got to know a 4-year-old, pre-verbal autistic boy who melted my heart. I vowed then to switch my research focus to autism, so for 5-years, I worked at the MIND Institute in Sacramento, California studying the neuropathology (underlying differences in the brain) of autism. In addition to all the hours I spent looking down a microscope, I volunteered with the Social Skills Program, teaching and encouraging autistic teenagers to practice and hone their conversational skills. 

JG: You've gone from being an academic to helping the next generation of academics fuel their entrepreneurial skills. Do you think there is a lot of overlap between academia and doing business? What made you get into entrepreneurship? Why do you think it is so important? 

RW: I decided to step away from being an academic researcher after realising I wanted to have a more tangible and immediate impact on my career. That’s not to say that academic research isn’t important, it’s to say that I was ready for a change. I entered the world of entrepreneurship after a fortuitous conversation with one of my old PhD colleagues, Rebecca McKelvey. While completing her PhD, Rebecca set up the organisation in2scienceUK to provide sixth-form students from underprivileged backgrounds hands-on experience in research labs. A decade later this UCL social venture startup is still going strong. Rebecca knew I was looking for a new challenge and mentioned a job opening overseeing an entrepreneurial training programme for UCL doctoral students.

There is a huge overlap of skills between an academic researcher and an entrepreneur; defining problems and identifying innovative solutions, outlining meaningful goals and creating a strategy to reach them, having the resilience to carry on when things get tough but knowing when to be flexible and change direction are just some of them.

Being able to identify, develop and promote their entrepreneurial skills will help them stand out from the crowd in large applicant pools in the upcoming competitive job market. 

JG: If you reflect on your experience with working in higher education and equipping others with the skills they need to succeed, what is the single biggest skill people need to develop? 

RW: To nail down one skill amongst a sea of many is really difficult, however, I’ve recently talked with Sonia Codreanu, Associate Lecturer at UCL who studies entrepreneurship. She has looked at how early-stage startups have coped in relation to the COVID-19 pandemic and whether they have died, survived or thrived. It turns out the key to success is flexibility. Your long-term goals may stay the same, but the approach to reach them must adapt when the world around you changes. Blockbuster Video is a prime example of sticking to a ‘tried and tested’ business model and not adapting to the changing want and needs of the customer. They went from a valuation of $8.4 billion to bankrupt.

Therefore, my message here is don’t be afraid to pivot, embrace failure as long as you tried and try to adapt.

JG: What are your top three tips for others hoping to build their entrepreneurial skills?

1. RW: Learn how to communicate your message to a variety of audiences. This is equally important in academia and in business, whether you’re describing your research or pitching your business idea you need to be concise, clear and confident. Joining a public speaking group such as Toastmasters is an excellent way to practice this skill in a safe and encouraging environment. 
2. Entrepreneurship is a big scary word for many people. If you are one of them, simply consider the transferable nature of the skills I’ve outlined and think about how you can apply them to your current work.

If you’ve got an idea for a new venture, don’t be scared about not being ‘business-minded’, try to reach out to people that are to help and guide you. 

1. Finally, follow your passions, identify how you can best impact the world around you, set goals, work hard and go for it.

Why "interdisciplinary thinking"?

Because I fully believe that building expertise, learning from others and bringing together different industries is a positive thing. We often do not go outside our own industries. I've also had six-career changes and relish in the transferrable skills I've picked up along the way. Join me in building unique expertise on all things culture, diplomacy and innovation!

I am the co-founder of the Growth & Grace Collective (G&G), a global network seeking to connect, inspire and empower people in all stages of their lives to grow wholesomely. We change the narrative around professional development through masterclasses, a supportive online community, life skill workshops and more.

I am a UK Civil Servant, an Award-Winning Entrepreneur, Public Speaker & International Strategy/Culture/Leadership Consultant. I am currently studying a PhD in global branding for countries (soft power) and the transmission of ideas. I am a serial multi-hyphenate seeking to bridge the gap between culture, diplomacy and innovation with my monthly LinkedIn segment (Interdisciplinary Thinking) where I built a following of over 23k in 8 months.

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Thanks for reading—see you in two weeks!