2023 was a big year of transition for me. Just this year I graduated from UCSF, published a paper, moved from San Francisco to Singapore to pioneer pharmacometrics research as part of the Research Data Integration Group at BII.

One of the biggest challenges has been learning to learn all over again. Toward the end of my PhD, it was easy for me to feel like an expert, being confident and proud of what I had accomplished over the past 5 years of nonstop hard work. Upon starting a new job though, I realized once again that I once again faced a steep learning curve.

My main job as a student was to be able to develop and carry through a project well with guidance from my supervisor. I naively thought that simply gaining expertise with my thesis lab, and learning to develop a clear, feasible scientific project, alongside a little creativity and expertise of my own was sufficient to start a research career. Now that I am starting up my own research, I find that many other factors need to be considered too, such as the bigger overall scientific ecosystem of my institute, and where I can fit in and complement others well with my research. These days, I not only write research proposals but have to learn to network at a different level, pitching my ideas well for collaborations and data, both to experts and nonexperts alike, and building new relationships with a new scientific community. I had to learn to be adaptable too, and have recently started picking up computational multi-omics skills again. I have been learning to use Linkedin more too, and how to build my own website and branding. The list goes on…

I liken this experience a lot to one of my favourite martial art stories about Jigorō Kanō, the founder of Judo. Despite being THE Judo Grandmaster, he requested to be buried with a white belt instead of his black belt, saying, “Because I will enter the next life as I lived this life…wearing my white belt.” While some might dispute whether this event actually occurred, I do think that the philosophy behind it is a well meaning one.

For those not familiar with the martial art belt ranking system, white belts are usually complete novices. The belt colors change over time as you progress, e.g. from white to yellow to orange etc. eventually toward a black belt, which would indicate a certain level of mastery in the martial art. But regardless of ranking, Grandmaster Kanō kept his white belt mentality to consistently hone his craft with humility while being open to learning and re-learning.

A similar thing can be said about my PhD experience. After achieving my degree, I do think I have some level of mastery in my field of study, much like getting a black belt in martial arts. But that constant need to learn and relearn even in science makes me want to put on my white belt again, to keep an open mind and continuously hone my craft.

Happy new year to all! May 2024 be another year of joyous learning and cheers to being a white belt all over again!