The ground is shifting under research funding, and we’re not waiting around for “normal” to return. In Part 2 of Uncharted Academia, Sarah lays out a practical path for early career investigators to stay steady and keep moving: cultivate resilience, communicate value with precision, and steer every decision using a clear North Star. If you’ve felt the pressure to diversify beyond NIH but weren’t sure how to adapt without losing focus, this conversation gives you a framework that actually holds up under stress.
We start by grounding resilience in purpose and self-belief. Then we dig into communication as the core research skill: defining the problem in plain language, aligning with sponsor missions and review criteria, and tailoring your message. From there, we put the North Star to work, transforming your vision into a concrete, fundable problem.
If you’re ready to replace hesitation with momentum and make your work legible to the people who can fund it, this one’s for you.

Interested in joining the next cohort of K to R Essentials? Join the waitlist at https://sarahdobson.co/k2r