Unwillingness to seek help Developing as an expert in a niche area almost implies you shouldn’t need to ask for advice, but to quote former General Electric CEO Jack Welch: “If you’re the smartest person in the room, you’re in the wrong room.” PhD students need to be encouraged to view seeking help as a sign of strength, rather than weakness. Feeling as if you don’t belong Students pursuing cross-speciality PhDs can often end up with two or three supervisors. They don’t belong to any particular department and are dependent on their supervisors’ networks. Hult professor of human resource management Rea Prouska says it helps if students recognise that their PhD study years are in fact the start of their academic career. “PhD students need to work hard on taking the initiative and establishing their own networks, both for research collaboration and for socialisation with peers,” she remarks. Lack of community/connectivity Having only one or two peers or academics to share ideas with can feel very isolating. There may be occasional group meetings, but often these are formal in nature and there is little opportunity for real human emotion or connection. Hult’s Ghosh recognises this experience from her own PhD studies: “I felt a sense of kinship with the authors of my literature review, but there was very little human interaction, except for with my supervisors, but that only happened every six weeks.” Ghosh’s experience was exacerbated by the fact that she was studying during the Covid era and carried out the majority of her work remotely. “A stronger online community that also offered offline events, writers’ retreats and so on would have improved the experience,” she comments. Maintaining a study/life balance Many PhD students will be balancing a crushing academic workload with a pressurised job and the demands of a young family. Some individuals may also be under financial strain and concerned about their future career prospects. With time at a premium, they are unlikely to prioritise connecting with peers and taking part in community-building events. Such a pressurised existence only adds to feelings of isolation. The training that supervisors have
COMBATTING LONELINESS How can young academics curb feelings of loneliness? Here are 10 suggestions, from the relatively logical to the less obvious, yet extremely powerful
• Connect with others. Small talk is important • Join social events and seek out common interests – bonding over shared passions can foster meaningful connections • Take time to invest in an external network • Offer help to others: instead of spiralling into personal feelings of loneliness, make an effort to come out of your shell • Ask yourself: what is real and what is not? Your feelings of loneliness are subjective. It may be worth making a list of friends and contacts. The act of compiling this will illustrate that it is possible to tap into a wider group of people at work who are willing to connect with you. In addition, you can experiment with sharing emotions and seeking help from people whom you trust; make a note of everything you learn
your efforts on tackling the main source, either by yourself or with counselling • Regular physical exercise can boost energy, wellbeing and your level of willingness to connect with others at work • Speak up: you may not be addressing conflict with others. This could take the form of resentment or disagreement about the volume of work you are taking on, or maybe you are experiencing subtle bullying or discrimination. These could manifest in feelings of loneliness • Instead of feeling like a victim, try to be more adaptable and shift some of your behaviours to take a more proactive stance. Drop an email to one of your contacts, or arrange coffee with a colleague
• Allow time for micro-
moments of connectivity. Our daily schedule is often packed with virtual meetings and tasks. In the new hybrid world, we need to allow space for human connections. This means ensuring you set aside time for informal, in-person catch-ups with supportive people in your network
• Delve deeper into the sources of loneliness (eg loss of supportive
colleagues, or other issues outside your professional context such as financial pressures, or relationships with a partner or children). This can help you focus
18 Business Impact • ISSUE 1 • 2025
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