In light of the shit show of unprecedented proportions that is academia at the present moment,  post-ac coach Kel Weinhold and I launched a new 12 part series on leaving academia called, Twelve Steps To A New Job.  Reach out to us for support and coaching no matter where you are in your transition, at postac@theprofessorisin.com or gettenure@gmail.com,

Managing these times together, in solidarity,

Karen and Kel

This series is loosely derived from the 12 step model of Alcoholics Anonymous, liberally re-worked to speak to the quasi-addictive nature of academic (over-) identification, and the need for a profound and intense reconfiguration of self to be able to depart effectively to different fields of work.

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The 12-step framework we will use is (of course) entirely secular, it is academic specific, and it is forward looking.

It’s important to clarify its forward focus because many commentators have written about adjuncting as an addiction and indeed the metaphor of addiction tracks remarkably well with the many harms of the academic career. It’s a worthy exercise, especially if you are an adjunct, to consider the ways you might be addicted to the “drug” of academic access, however paltry and self-defeating, and the the harms this addiction has caused yourself and others.

However, that is not our project here. Our project here is rather to use the 12 steps as prompts for imagining an entirely new identity separate from your time in academia that allows for proactive pursuit of new kinds of work.  We hope in the long run, your PhD will feel as distant as your long-ago undergraduate days. That is, as something that formed you, but did not define you. Something that was just a launching ground for what came next.

In the process, as always, we will focus on both internal/emotional work and external/practical strategies for the transition out of academia, critiquing the ways we have all absorbed values tied to white supremacy and capitalist priorities.

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Here are the steps:

1. Acknowledge your powerlessness
   • Accept you cannot control the structural changes in academia, and let go of belief that effort alone will protect you. Consider taking a Buddhist-inspired view on (letting go of) control, and remember that it is only white supremacy that has told you that hard work promises “fair” outcomes.
2. Seek strength beyond yourself
   • Instead of a “higher power,” we encourage you to draw strength from those outside yourself-your community and its collective wisdom, and decolonized, anti-capitalist perspectives. Reject the white-knuckle isolated efforts of white supremacy and capitalism, and remember: YOU ARE NOT ALONE.
3. Trust the collective wisdom
   • Here you make a conscious decision to change your focus, away from the past, and toward a new life beyond academia. Trust yourself and remember that you deserve a life that isn’t defined by institutional harm.
4. Take a fearless professional inventory
   • Reflect honestly on your capabilities. Move past imposter syndrome and internal elitism that only honors “intellectual” skills to the exclusion of other kinds, including those you gained prior to graduate school. Recognize creative work, side hustles, manual skills… all the many talents you bring. Honor your full range of experience.
5. Own your missteps without shame
   • Acknowledge staying too long in harmful environments, and allowing yourself to be part of a system of exploitation that harmed you, and perhaps others. Release shame around past decisions. Understand how those choices created limiting beliefs. Begin saying the hard truths aloud (e.g., “Maybe I shouldn’t have finished the PhD”).
6. Release what doesn’t serve you.
   • Our midpoint: we make a pivotal forward-looking shift. Let go of PhD/academic identity as central to your self-definition. From this point start telling a new story based on your whole self. See career change as a practical step, not a spiritual calling, and let yourself seek jobs that pay (ie, income stream) which can meet your current needs even if they aren’t “perfect. Your next job is not your last job!
7. Seek Guidance
   • The world is full of helpful resources: books, blogs, websites, mentors. The “Professor Is Out” Facebook group is the PREMIER site on the internet for mutual aid and support.  You can also start to seek training in the areas you’re transitioning toward. Includes micro-credentials, and informational interviews.
8. Engage in Self-Reflection
   • Regularly assess your progress and make adjustments. Career transitions are not final steps—they evolve over time. Reflection reveals lingering attachments to academic values and habits.  This step also includes making honest commitments to future actions.
9. Forgive Yourself and Others (Amends)
   • This is the well-known amends step, but here you are mostly making amends to yourself. You may need to write an apology letter to yourself. You might need to forgive  abusive advisors or toxic institutions. Letting go of obsessive regrets is crucial (“looping” on what could have been).  This is where you remind yourself: do not personalize a structural failure.
10. Continued Career Inventory & Self Reflection
    • Based on the recovery idea of continuing personal inventory. Recognizes that the transition is unpredictable and non-linear. You might fall back into old habits–that’s natural!  Academia trains linear thinking; real-world careers often require improvisation and unpredictability. Acknowledging regressions in thought patterns is essential.
11. Pursue Clarity and Resist Denial
    • Denial of our current reality – and how bad it truly is – is the single greatest obstacle to your healthy transition. Balance your aspirations with present realities—compromise is necessary. Recognize you won’t get to dictate all aspects of your next role. Avoid self-exceptionalism—understand that hardship is not unique to you.  Perhaps look to ancestors, previous eras or different communities for examples of resilience in the face of hardship.
12. Give Back

• • Resist toxic individualism and return to community. Share your knowledge and experience with others. Example: contribute to the “Professor Is Out” group, support others in transition.  We find ourselves in a time in which only collective responses will work. Our survival requires us all. Individualism is a lie. We move forward together.

As always, we welcome your insights and input! Feel free to comment here or email us at postaccareers@gmail.com.

And don’t forget you can start your own journey any time with an initial 30 minute appointment with coach Kel Weinhold.