Interview with POWER Ambassador Stephanie Al Otaiba

In February 2019, members of the POWER Steering Committee spoke with Stephanie Al Otaiba 
Ph.D. We had an insightful conversation about making an impact as education researcher and
advice for women. 

POWER: What is the best advice you have received during your career?

• This below model of ikigai, which comes from Japan, is something that I find very useful in all aspects of my career. Ikigai emerged from qualitative research (interviews) with Japanese people who lived to be over 100 years old. I first received training on it from my yoga teacher.

• From Wikipedia: Ikigai (生き甲斐, pronounced [ikiɡai]) is a Japanese concept that means "reason for being".  The word "ikigai" is usually used to indicate the source of value in one's life or the things that make one's life worthwhile.  Another resource is THIS article from Medium. 
• I use ikigai to plan goals.  The first year I used it, I had it posted on the side of my computer to remind me to think about these concepts:  1) what is really important to me? 2) what is it that I really love and motivates me? 3) What is it keeping me up at night that the world really needs? 4) what is it I can be paid for and be a resource for people for others to be paid or receive what they need?

POWER: How do you make decisions about how to spend your time?

• It is important to remember that we need to take care of ourselves to stay good at what we are good at.  We need to be as thoughtful about what we say yes to as to what we say no to.

 

• I use ikigai to encourage myself to say “no” to one thing per month that doesn’t fit in my ikigai vision. As women, we are asked to do a lot. We need to be intentional about how we chose to spend our time. For example, for me, I hold a strong value in teacher education. If I was asked to be on a committee focused on teaching online, I would say yes to this.  It is really important to me to interact with students face-to-face, and I want a voice in that discussion.  But I would say no to a grant opportunity that doesn’t align with what I am motivated by or what I think the field needs or to a role that doesn’t utilize the skill set that is sweeter for me. 

 

• When making decisions, don’t be reactive. Take time to think about the decision. Find an ally who can help you decide.  For example, if you are feeling overwhelmed, you may ask your Chair or other senior colleague to help you prioritize what are the most critical responsibilities and goals. 

 

• Also, be thoughtful about how you can say no. For sensitive topics or with more senior people, you may need to have a face-to-face discussion but in other situations, an email may suffice.  Sometimes it is helpful to role play saying no.

 

• We also need to remember that we aren’t the only person who can do certain things. We may not be “uniquely good.”  If you find an ally or partner who has similar skills and interests, then take turns engaging with certain tasks. 

​

• Brené Brown has TED talks on: vulnerability and shame – in one she discusses her frustration with herself when she said yes to an “opportunity” to present when she wished she had not. She questioned her own need to say yes and not hear her own inner voice and then eventually feeling resentful. These talks reinforce the intentional use of time for me and also reinforce that we all feel like an impostor from time to time. 

 

• We have also implemented ikigai in our college as we are thinking about our College mission and goals. I also used it in our lab where we discussed how we as a team should spend our time.  

 
POWER: What do you think is particularly important for early- and mid-career women to know?

• It is important to understand that there is often a lack of parity and/or clarity about benefits, such as salary and summer support, across or within universities. You need to advocate and negotiate to maximize opportunities but you need to know what is “beyond the line in the sand” to ask for.   Find out from more senior colleagues what negotiating did they do and what is reasonable to ask for.  Learn about your value at your institution, but always remember that this is different than your self-worth.

 

• Regarding promotion and tenure, try to learn what directions your institution sends out to external promotion and tenure letter writers.  There is often lack of specificity that can be problematic. For instance, does your institution inform external reviewers about family and medical leave policies that may influence how reviewers perceive the productivity or potential “gaps” in productivity in a vita from a faculty member under review.  

 

• When identifying external reviewers, it is always good to have as many as you can from institutions that are a little more ambitious than your own. International reviewers may be helpful but they can be tricky – sometimes they have different tenure clocks or expectations.

 

• You want people that can talk about the coherence of your research. For example, if you work in both autism and early childhood, it would be good to have people in both domains that can speak about both dimensions of your work.  Also, be strategic about providing your reviewers with a detailed research narrative, so your reviewers can make a stronger case for you.

 

• I received the wonderful advice that you should always publish more than what your institution requires. This gives you the flexibility to adapt to changes in expectations. 

POWER: What advice do you have for faculty who are developing mentoring relationships as either the mentor or the mentee?

• I highly recommend this book: The Elements of Mentoring by Brad Johnson and Charles Ridley.

 

• We can mentor both formally and informally. 

 

• Examples of informal mentorship: (a) provide praise and affirmation of others’ work (i.e., “shine a light on others”), (b) cite their work, (c) write tenure letters or help people think about who to list as external letter writers, (d) offer to write other letters of support, such as for a grant or a professional development opportunity (e.g., IES methodological training); (e) create writing groups and advise one another about where to submit manuscripts, (f) assist junior faculty in managing a lab or office hours, (g) help junior faculty learn and negotiate the university system, and (h) help with networking – be intentional about learning about mentoring within AERA for example for historically under-represented individuals in IHEs

 

• For formal mentoring, you should consider having a mentor both within your institution as well as outside your institution. You can ask your senior colleagues for recommendations for mentors outside your university. 

 

• For people in their mid-career, you want to consider whether a potential mentee is really interested in listening to what you have to say. Ask yourself what you are willing to give up to be able to provide mentoring. If you are debating offering time and energy- be sure that you set clear expectations for what you can do and set boundaries (what is confidential, how often can you be contacted, are there “black-out days when you have to have time for your own work or travel, make decisions about socializing, what to do if a mentee-mentor relationship is not working out).

 

• There is power in joint mentoring. You may have a certain skill set that would be very valuable, but someone else could provide mentorship on other skills.

 

• Professional organizations are a great mechanism to develop mentoring relationships and build networks. You can support individuals by suggesting conferences, introducing them to others, and/or helping them connect with individuals with whom they can submit a symposia  For individuals of color or other minority backgrounds, it is helpful to have networks that represent their identity (e.g., AERA minority caucus or CEC Middle East caucus).  Be sensitive to race and ethnicity.

 

• Johnson and Ridley also point out the need to plan for changes in the mentor-mentee relationship- and note that in business these usually last about 5 years: initiation phase, cultivation phase, separation phase, or a redefinition phase if it does not end entirely.

 

• They suggest scheduling periodic check-ins and evaluations to learn more about the process of monitoring progress toward career goals.

 
POWER: Is there anything that you wish you had done differently in your career?  What would you do differently?

• I should have taken sabbaticals and research leaves. I put myself last. Taking the leaves would have given me more time to think and reflect. I think I would also have taken a more active role in initiating mentors for myself. It’s not too late.

 
We are grateful that Stephanie spent her time and energy helping us think strategically about how to make an impact that fits our values.