WEBVTT

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[Morse Code Beeps]
[Whoosh]
[Helicopter

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rotor]

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Hello,

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and welcome
to Effective Meetings with Advisors.

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My name is Evan Kramer.

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I'm an AeroAstro Communication Lab Fellow,
and I'll be your instructor today.

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Here's a list of learning goals
for this workshop.

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After this workshop,
you'll be able to have an approach

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to help you feel prepared
going into meetings with your advisor.

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You will have tools to help improve mutual

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understanding between advisor and advisee,
and you'll have strategies

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for compromising with your advisor
when you're expectations misalign.

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We'd like to begin this workshop
with an introductory activity.

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We'd like for you to reflect
on a recent meeting with an advisor

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by considering the questions
on the worksheet

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titled Meeting
Prep Handout in supplementary materials.

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Please pause this video to respond
to the questions listed in the handout.

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[Alien spaceship beeps]

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To set the scope of this workshop,

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we explicitly define the types of meetings
covered.

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In this case, the scope is fairly broad
in that any meeting with a mentor, such

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as an academic advisor, research advisor,
or outside technical specialist,

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regarding academic updates is considered.

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Specific examples include one-on-one
research meeting updates,

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meetings to review journal
or conference paper submissions,

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or technical presentation dry runs.

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So what exactly is considered
an effective meeting?

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An effective meeting

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is one in which clear mutual
understanding of expectations

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between advisor
and advisee are established.

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Some example expectations you,
the advisee,

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may have of your advisor
include the frequency of your meetings,

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the format
in which they give feedback on your work,

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and funding for research
related travel, among others.

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Some example expectations
your advisor may have of you

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include the extent to which you are
physically or virtually present on campus,

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the amount of time that you have off,

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quantity and type of research output,

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and teaching
or grading commitments, among others.

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It is

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important to note that you will know
if a meeting has been successful

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if you feel that you have specific
and well-defined

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takeaways
and next steps at its conclusion.

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To help you maximize the effectiveness
of your advisor

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meetings, here's
an approach that you can take.

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This block diagram
graphically shows the meeting as a shaded

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gray box with inputs and outputs,
and an internal structure.

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The input entails the effort
you put into the meeting,

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while the output corresponds
to your specific

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and well-defined takeaways and next steps.

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The internal structure
of the meeting involves

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three unique actions in which you share
your prepared materials,

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engage in discussions
about your presented materials,

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and compromise on any misaligned expectations you may have with your advisor.

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Note that blue

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arrows between each of these three unique
actions indicate the flow of information

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and suggests that each of these actions
will take place in a cyclic manner.

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The following slides unpack the inputs,
outputs, and internal structure

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of the meeting in more detail
to provide you with a framework

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to maximize the effectiveness
of your advisor meetings.

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The first step to an effective advisor
meeting

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is the effort that you put in preparation
before it even starts.

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Preparing entails organizing
the information you want to share

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and assessing what information
and feedback you want in return.

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A helpful way to start
preparation is to make an agenda.

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This could be in the form of an outline
slide covering the main topics

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that you intend to touch upon
at the beginning of your presentation.

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Be mindful of the number of topics
you list in your outline,

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by estimating how much time it will take
for you to share your material,

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and doubling this time
to account for discussions

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and compromises with your advisor.

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Also note that the amount of detail
necessary in the outline varies

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depending on the type of meeting
you're preparing for.

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For example, more detailed outlines
that include overarching

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topic titles and subsection
names are necessary for longer meetings,

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including proposal defenses
and grant proposal reviews.

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For more routine meetings,
an agenda can be less formal and as simple

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as an emailed, bulleted list of topics
you intend on covering during the meeting.

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During your preparation,
you should also consider

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options for different types of media
to share your materials with.

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Today, the most common media format
is a PowerPoint slide

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to visualize data and figures.

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However, other

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media types can work well,
including a hand-written flowchart

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for a research story
that you share on paper in person,

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or as a photograph virtually,

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or a written draft for a paper review,

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that you share on paper in person,
or as a PDF virtually.

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You also want to think
of specific questions

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you like to pose to elicit feedback
and action items during the meeting.

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These are important to think of beforehand
since they can guide the types

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of discussions and compromises
you engage in with your advisor.

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To practice the initial idea

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organization phase of the meeting
preparation process, complete

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the worksheet titled
Preparing for Advisor - Advisee Meetings,

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in the supplementary materials.

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In this activity,
you will practice organizing your thoughts

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into two categories.

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Information you want to share, such
as general updates on research, problems

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you're currently solving and how, results
and their meaning, among others;

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and information you want in return,
such as specific feedback

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on a result, decisions on deadlines
for submission,

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research directions to chart your course
for the next month or two, among others.

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Please pause this video now
to complete the workshop and return once

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you're finished.

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[Alien spacship beeps]

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We now turn our attention

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to the internal structure of the meeting
and start with the sharing step.

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Sharing typically happens
during the first part of the meeting.

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This is your chance to present
the material you put so much effort

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into preparing.

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Try to slowly walk through the content
you have prepared.

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In this sense, walkthrough refers
to the acknowledgment that this is likely

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the first time anyone aside from yourself
is looking at the content you're sharing.

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So be patient and work
hard to ensure your advisor is following

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by asking if they need any clarification
periodically.

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Presenting the details of your material

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is important,
but try not to only focus on them.

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Remember that the success of your meeting
is contingent on you

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establishing clear, mutual
understanding of expectations

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between your advisor and yourself
and having specific,

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well-defined takeaways
and action items at meeting conclusion.

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Note that if you find

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yourself ahead of the curve in meeting
content preparation, you could consider

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sending this information
to your meeting attendees ahead of time.

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The discussion step

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takes place
after your initial sharing step.

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Discussion
periods are opportunities for your advisor

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to engage
with the content that you shared.

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Discussions are a two way street.

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Your advisor will ask questions
about the content you shared.

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These can range from questions
of clarification

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to questions about decisions
you made in carrying out your research.

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You will then have the opportunity
to provide clarification

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and or additional details
about the content that you shared.

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Your objective at this stage
is to establish

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mutual understanding
between your advisor and yourself

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of all the content that you shared
so that you can establish

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mutually agreed
upon expectations going forward.

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This brings us to the compromising stage.

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Compromising entails meeting somewhere
in the middle between two proposed paths.

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Note the use of the word somewhere.

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It may turn out that
the eventual path you end up

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taking is exactly
the one you or your advisor suggested.

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Compromising
doesn't always entail combining

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aspects of two proposed paths.

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Your advisor may have thoughts on
how to approach a task,

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but you may have the most relevant problem
specific knowledge.

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While it may feel challenging at times
when your advisor's proposed path forward

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isn't initially aligning with yours,
remember that

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the fact that they're sharing
their thoughts in the first place

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is a demonstration of their investment
in your work.

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This realization can help spur

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constructive conversation
instead of a defense oriented approach.

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It is important

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you propose a compromise
only when you clearly understand

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how your advisor suggestions
fit into your work.

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While you may be the person in the lab
performing the work, your advisor likely

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has several more years of relevant work
experience on the subject compared to you.

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So there may be underlying rationale
for their suggestion, based on their own

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experience,
that you'll want to distill before

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suggesting an alternative approach.

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Perhaps most importantly,
knowledge of your own priorities

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is key, as they can help reach compromises
that mean the most to you.

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This ties back to the preparation step.

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For example,
there may be a specific solution

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method to a problem
you want to pursue to gain experience.

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You might suggest fitting this solution
method into your advisor's suggestion

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of a more holistic change
to your methodology,

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to ensure that you gain
the experience that you're looking for.

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Before practicing
compromises through an activity,

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it is worth noting that the approaches
covered in this workshop

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should be tailored
to your specific advisor.

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Trying different approaches
with the tools we're providing

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can be an efficient way for determining
what works best.

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For example, for an enthusiastic advisor

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with strong feelings
for their own suggestions, you might try

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compromising on several or several smaller
aspects of a topic

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instead of on a singular central
aspect of a proposed path.

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Or for a more transactionally oriented
relationship,

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you might adopt your advisor's
exact proposed path in one topic

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in order to feel comfortable
advocating for your own

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suggested path in another topic.

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You might also consider talking
to senior graduate students in your lab

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to gain insight into how they effectively
communicate with your advisor.

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This brings us to the Canned Questions

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template, which can be found
in the supplementary materials.

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This resource provides
general question structures

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that can be used
during a meeting with an advisor.

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There is three categories of questions
sets outlined in boxes;

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namely those that are meant for
communicating your desired expectations,

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distilling an advisor's expectations,
and negotiating with an advisor.

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These questions are written in a form
where you can essentially drop in whatever

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specific topic you're discussing, without
changing the function of the question.

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For example, a question for communicating
your desired expectations could be, “I'm

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hoping to conduct unit tests
before running a complete subsystem test.

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Does this align with your expectations?”

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These questions don't have to be used in
isolation, either.

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Stringing together multiple question
structures can be effective, too.

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For example, combining question structures
2A and 1C results in a complete

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train of thought that is both seeking
clarification of an advisor's

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expectations and communicating
your desired expectations.

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Just to

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clarify, you're asking me to proceed
with the full subsystem test.

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Is that correct?

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I ask because I'm hoping to get
some experience setting up and conducting

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software unit tests,
and I'm wondering if that aligns

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with your expectations.

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Remember that the key

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to finding success with these question
structures is to always maintain

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a level of respect in your communication
with your advisor.

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Being mindful of your tone
and using positive language

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can be the difference in making
an effective versus ineffective meeting.

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Please pause this video to take a moment
to review the question structures

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in the canned question handout
if you haven't already.

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[Alien spaceship beeps]

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Let's take this opportunity to practice

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using the canned questions
in the canned question handout.

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Return to your responses
from the introductory activity

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and use the question structures
from the canned question handout

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to first clarify
a miscommunication, second,

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distill your advisor's expectations,
and third, negotiate a compromise.

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Remember to

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add in positive language
and respectful tone where appropriate.

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Please pause this video
to complete the activity and return

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when finished.

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[Alien spaceship beeps]

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We've touched on compromising
over the last few slides,

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but there are a few additional ideas
worth noting.

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These ideas fall under the umbrella
of strategic compromising,

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which can be thought of as a way
to thoughtfully approach

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the compromising process.

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First, when it becomes clear
that you and your advisor have unaligned

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expectations, try
to think from your advisor's perspective.

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Why would they be suggesting
their proposition?

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This may be a good place
to use some canned questions to distill

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your advisor's underlying motivations,
such as funding constraints

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or administrative or bureaucracy pressures
that you aren't aware of.

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Second, know what your non-negotiables
are prior to your meeting.

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Identifying aspects of your research
that you are not willing to compromise on

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can help you communicate your perspective
clearly, confidently, and concisely.

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Third, seek common ground.

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Looking for areas
where you and your advisors goals

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align can help
smooth out the compromise process,

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especially at the beginning
of negotiating.

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Finally, focus on the big picture
and be open to feedback.

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If it seems like your advisor is adamant
about something,

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it may be most strategic to just go along,
especially if it doesn't violate

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your non-negotiables or alter
the big picture

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of how you envision
your graduate school experience.

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Remember that

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your advisor is supposed to have opinions,
and the fact that they are engaging with

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you shows their investment in you
as a student.

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That concludes this workshop
on effective meetings with advisors.

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You should now be able to implement
an approach to help you feel prepared

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going into meetings with your advisor.

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Improve mutual understanding
between your advisor

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and yourself using tools
presented in this workshop,

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and use strategies for compromising
with your advisor when your expectations

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misalign.
I hope you find the presented tools

00:16:35.494 --> 00:16:38.497
and resources
useful in your upcoming meetings.

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This workshop was created
and presented by Fellows of the MIT

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AeroAstro Communication Lab.

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You can find other workshops

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related to technical communication
in our MIT OpenCourseWare repository.

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Thank you.

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[Morse code beeps]