Dr Jodi Watt - Navigating challenging conversations in academia

Dr Jodi Watt, narrating a new blog they wrote for the Dementia Researcher website. Jodi discusses the intricacies of handling difficult conversations within the academic sphere. She emphasises the importance of empathy and effective communication when responding to colleagues facing personal challenges. Drawing on her own experiences, including coping with her father's death during her PhD, she criticises the often impersonal academic environment and suggests adopting the VASE method—Validate, Acknowledge, Support, Express—as a framework for more compassionate interactions. Jodi argues that fostering empathy not only improves individual relationships but also enhances overall lab cohesion and productivity. Find the original text, and narration here on our website. https://www.dementiaresearcher.nihr.ac.uk/blog-navigating-challenging-conversations-in-academia/ -- Dr Jodi Watt is a Postdoctoral Researcher at University of Glasgow. Jodi's academic interests are in both healthy ageing and neurodegenerative diseases of older age, and they are currently working on drug repurposing for dementia. Previously they worked on understanding structural, metabolic and physiological brain changes with age, as measured using magnetic resonance imaging. As a queer and neurodiverse person, Jodi is also incredibly interested in improving diversity and inclusion practices both within and outside of the academic context. -- Enjoy listening? We're always looking for new bloggers, drop us a line. http://www.dementiaresearcher.nihr.ac.uk This podcast is brought to you in association with Alzheimer's Association, Alzheimer's Research UK, Alzheimer's Society and Race Against Dementia, who we thank for their ongoing support. -- Follow us on Social Media: https://www.instagram.com/dementia_researcher/ https://www.facebook.com/Dementia.Researcher/ https://twitter.com/demrescommunity https://www.linkedin.com/company/dementia-researcher