Building a legacy

Making it to the top 2% list of Ioannidis again this year has sparked again some ruminating about how important (or not) such metrics are.

In my opinion, metrics based on citations are very limited. They are a remote proxy of the real impact of our work, and, ultimately, of how we are making this world a better place.

Continuing on that thought, I was thinking the other how I can make this world a better place with my work – and what the legacy is that I want to build, now that I am solidly mid-career.

Here are some things I value for building a legacy:

• Mentoring students: For me, students are the most important. The opportunities that I can create for them, the doors that I can open for them, the technical and soft skills that I can teach them are the most important after all.
• Making connections: My network is solid and international – and I want my students and junior colleagues to take full advantage of this. Making introductions and making networking easier for my students is something I find very important.
• Creating opportunities for others: Along the same lines, I am thinking more and more about who can follow my footsteps for various research projects and technical committees. As such, I hope to create great opportunities for junior faculty.
• Being kind and compassionate: I don’t think this one needs an explanation 🙂
• Breaking down stereotypes: There are still too few women professors in STEM, so I hope that by leaning in, showing up, and creating opportunities for junior women, I can contribute to achieving better gender balance in our field.
• Becoming embedded in my local community: As an immigrant, I found it difficult to connect to the local engineering community, and it has taken a lot of time. I am now more actively working on getting better embedded in the local engineering community.

Have you thought of how you would want your career to be remembered and the legacy you want to build?