Netherlands Institute for Health Sciences
Graduation Ceremony 2008
Rotterdam, Netherlands, 29 August
Dimitrios Trichopoulos
Vincent L. Gregory Professor of Cancer Prevention
Department of Epidemiology
Harvard School of Public Health
News & Events
Advice to a young scientist
 |  |
My so-called advantage is to be seventy years old. While you have been professionals for just one or two years, my professional life spans more than 45 years.
Whether you will be successful or not is largely a matter of chance. But some resources are more measurable: your natural talent, your intellect, and your effort, perseverance, and persistence. The difference made to our accomplishments by effort, perseverance and persistence is twice or even three times greater than the difference made by physical talent. Natural talent matters – but without effort, your intellect won’t get you very far.
Advice 1: Be strong and work hard.
The second important issue is not to be defeated by failures. In professional life, there are moments of brilliance, moments of success, but there’s also an endless accumulation of failure. The important lesson is not to be disappointed. The ability to face life the day after a small catastrophe, with the same optimism and strength is very important.
When something nice happens to us, we tend to be happy for just a few hours, while unhappiness continues for a number of days. We should fight the asymmetry between unhappiness and happiness. Whenever an unfortunate event happens, think that you’re young, smart and successful, and that happiness lies ahead of you.
Advice 2: Don’t give up – persevere.
You are becoming the critics, perhaps the ultimate arbitrators, but be gentle in this role. As a scientist, you should never be hard in your criticisms – not to others, and not to yourselves.
Advice 3: Never be offensive; let ideas fight and confront each other.
So these are the three pieces of so-called advice that come from my experience. Be strong and work hard. Don’t give up when misfortune strikes – because it will. And be gentle in your criticism towards your colleagues, and also towards yourself.
Whether you will be successful or not is largely a matter of chance. But some resources are more measurable: your natural talent, your intellect, and your effort, perseverance, and persistence. The difference made to our accomplishments by effort, perseverance and persistence is twice or even three times greater than the difference made by physical talent. Natural talent matters – but without effort, your intellect won’t get you very far.
Advice 1: Be strong and work hard.
The second important issue is not to be defeated by failures. In professional life, there are moments of brilliance, moments of success, but there’s also an endless accumulation of failure. The important lesson is not to be disappointed. The ability to face life the day after a small catastrophe, with the same optimism and strength is very important.
When something nice happens to us, we tend to be happy for just a few hours, while unhappiness continues for a number of days. We should fight the asymmetry between unhappiness and happiness. Whenever an unfortunate event happens, think that you’re young, smart and successful, and that happiness lies ahead of you.
Advice 2: Don’t give up – persevere.
You are becoming the critics, perhaps the ultimate arbitrators, but be gentle in this role. As a scientist, you should never be hard in your criticisms – not to others, and not to yourselves.
Advice 3: Never be offensive; let ideas fight and confront each other.
So these are the three pieces of so-called advice that come from my experience. Be strong and work hard. Don’t give up when misfortune strikes – because it will. And be gentle in your criticism towards your colleagues, and also towards yourself.