Using a Storytelling Approach to Communicate your PhD Journey to Industry Stakeholders
Crystal sitting on a black desk laughing with a microphone in a white striped vest and orange shirt. There is a bookshelf behind her.
Building the Framework
When I started pursuing my PhD in an interdisciplinary field, I knew that I did not want to be a tenure-track professor when I graduated. While I may have not been clear on what exactly I wanted to study, I knew I wanted it to inform the job that I wanted to do post PhD. While I had always heard that it did not necessarily matter what I studied for my industry job and my skills would be useful, I wanted to build a career story that had structure (skills I gained) and relevant substance (knowledge I acquired). While my education and work experience may not be directly aligned with every position I apply to, I know how to communicate my value because I know the structure and substance of my story! Storytelling is not just a needed business skill, it is a needed life skill and career skill. In communicating my story to others, I started using the 4 components of a good story as identified by Kindra Hall in Stories that Stick: (1) Identifiable Characters, (2) Authentic Emotion, (3) A Significant Moment, (4) Specific Details.
In every interview that I have been in, the main question is always why I want to transition from academia. I have found the STAR (Situation, Task, Action, Result) framework is good to respond to other behavioral interview questions, but using the framework that Kindra identified has been more useful to me in responding to a question about my story.
Identifiable Characters
In order for doctoral students to graduate, we have to make (or are supposed to) ONE original contribution to the field. In essence, we have to produce new knowledge to get this PhD. Not everyone has had to write a dissertation, but mostly everyone knows what a population is. For researchers, a population is who we are trying to translate and/or generalize our findings to from our sample. For everyone else, a population can be an audience of interest or the people that will be impacted by a policy, process, product, etc. These are the identifiable characters that I emphasize on my resume, in interviews, and when translating research within work. Talk about the people that matter!
Authentic Emotion
In every paper I have written in grad school, I have to write about the significance of the study. In quantitative studies, we talk about statistical significance, practical significance, and interpretation of results. In qualitative studies, we talk about transferable findings and the interpretation of results based on the context of the study. No matter the type of the study, we need to explain why our study matters and what it means for relevant stakeholders. Some of my favorite research studies recognize the human element in the interpretation of the results. For example, in my dissertation, I don’t just want to talk about the development of adaptability of minoritized groups. I want to discuss how these students felt when their adaptability was developed and the impact that these experiences had on them. It is those emotions that I am trying to emphasize in my dissertation and what I talk about in industry interviews when I am trying to relay how my study’s impact is relevant to the position I am applying and interviewing for.
A Significant Moment
The part that I am currently writing in my proposal is my motivation. I have always found this to be the hardest part to write in a paper because this is the part that sets the foundation for the study and generates interest. The motivation is important in conveying how your study is situated in the global perspective (i.e. why it matters). In interviews, the motivation helps convey why what you know is relevant to them. For example, in the current version of the motivation of my proposal, I talk about how adaptability needs to be examined further because there is not a collective definition based on how this word is used. In interviews for some DEI positions, I talk about how when I was applying for jobs, I noticed “adaptability” being mentioned on many job descriptions and how using words that are rooted in preconceived notions can provide a negative tension between DEI goals and talent acquisition. Same story- different twist!
Specific Details
In any research study, I would argue that context is important. Context includes demographic information, setting of the research participants, where the study was conducted, how the study was conducted, etc. Just like those details matter to the impact of your work, they also matter to the impact of your interview. (This does not mean to give off all of this information at once.) The purpose of giving specific details to is to keep your audience engaged, but not compromise the integrity of your story. Using the example of seeing “adaptability” in job descriptions, I often share how I was on my bedroom floor my senior year in college, overwhelmed, scrolling on LinkedIn looking for jobs to apply to when I came across these job descriptions. A bedroom floor, being overwhelmed, and scrolling on LinkedIn are details that most people can relate to; therefore, they are more likely to remember. While everyone may not have a story as personal as this one, you do have the ability to find details within your story that matter. You got this!!!!
If you are looking to switch from academia to industry, contact me at crystal@revolutionaryreimagination.com or schedule a free 1:1 conversation here! Together, we can determine your next steps.