Conferencing, Part 2

The conference in Montreal was a lot of fun. I had time to get reacquainted with old friends and met several new ones. And contrary to my initial expectations, several of the panels that I went to were great. One that was particularly interesting dealt with communication problems in organizational groups, while another was centered on communication technologies in organizations. There were other good ones, too, but those were the ones that really stood out in my mind. My presentation went fine. The presenters before me took too much time, so I had to cut my material short. But all in all, it was fine, and I think I got sympathy from the audience for having to speed things up. The conference was great. Montreal as a conference site, on the other hand, was just ok. It probably would have been fine except that the US dollar is doing so poorly against the Canadian dollar. So things that would have been a little over-priced anyway were really out there after the exchange rate. But even still, it was a good weekend.

Conferencing, Part 1

Yesterday, I left for a conference in Montreal. It's tough for me, being away from family and from routine for several days, particularly on a holiday weekend, but it is so much fun to see friends from other universities. I'm sharing a hotel room with my officemate from my PhD program. I have already seen several people I know at the hotel restaurant last night and in the lobby this morning. Sometimes I dread sitting down for the panels (although some are fabulous), and I almost never enjoy presenting my paper(s). I'll write Monday about how all of that goes. But renewing connections with friends is a wonderful thing.

The Worry Contagion

Have you ever noticed how when other people are worried about something, they really want you to worry also? There is a lot of talk at my university about a proposed change in the tenure and promotion policy. I am of the opinion that if you work hard and are good at what you do, tenure takes care of itself. Now, granted, I am still four years away and may be singing a different tune as that time approaches. For the moment, it's not something I worry about. But others do. In a lot of the talk about tenure, there is the sense that it's something to fear, and I get that feeling from tenure-track colleagues as well as tenured faculty members. And they really want me to be worried as well. I think I've noticed this before, but the feeling is stronger these days. Perhaps I am oblivious to my impending doom, but I choose not to worry from now. Woo Hoo!

A New Beginning

This post is my first attempt at blogging, and this blog is my first foray into this new communication channel. I’m a university professor, and I’ve heard my students discuss blogging numerous times. Until now, I have not tried it myself. I am starting this blog in part to explore the act of blogging itself so that this blog serves as a place of dialogue about the medium itself. As a relatively new professor, I am also hoping that this blog serves as a place to discuss what it means to be a professor and a place to share experiences.