Psychology 101 : The Unspoken Rules for

In this second edition of his popular Psychology 101½, eminent psychologist Robert J. Sternberg updates and extends a trove of wisdom gleaned from decades of experience in various academic settings and leadership positions. In his signature straightforward, intellectually honest, and pragmatic style, he imparts life lessons for building a successful and gratifying career.

This revision features lessons in five basic categories: identity and integrity, interpersonal relationships, institutions and academia, problems and tasks, and job and career. Recent developments in the field are covered, and new questions at the end of each lesson prompt reader self-reflection.

Valuable to academic psychologists at any level, this book will be especially prized by graduate students, post-doctorates, and early-career professors.

Robert J. Sternberg, PhD, received his BA from Yale and his doctorate from Stanford. He also is the recipient of 13 honorary doctorates. He is professor of human development at Cornell University. Prior to that, he served as a university dean, provost, and president.

Earlier, Dr. Sternberg was IBM Professor of Psychology and Education in the Department of Psychology at Yale University and director of the Yale Center for the Psychology of Abilities, Competencies, and Expertise (PACE Center). He was also the 2003 president of APA and the 2012–2013 president of the Federation of Associations in Behavioral and Brain Sciences.

He is editor of Perspectives on Psychological Science and previously was editor of Contemporary Psychology: APA Review of Books and Psychological Bulletin.

He has won many awards, including the James McKeen Cattell Award of the Association for Psychological Science.

Dr. Sternberg is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the National Academy of Education.

Preface

I. Identity and Integrity

Lesson 1: Don't Believe Things Just Because Other People Do
Lesson 2: When You Make Mistakes, Admit Them, Learn From Them, and Move On
Lesson 3: Decide What Is Important to You, and Then Be True to It
Lesson 4: Delay Gratification
Lesson 5: Do What You Believe Is Right
Lesson 6: Be Not a Saint, a Sinner, or a Sucker
Lesson 7: Believe in Yourself and Yours
Lesson 8: There Is Always Room To Grow
Lesson 9: Don't Take Yourself too Seriously
Lesson 10: Learn When It Is Time To Make Gracious Exits
Lesson 11: It Is More Important, Ultimately, to Be Wise Than Just to Be Smart
Lesson 12: Avoid the Major Pitfalls of the Foolish
Lesson 13: Reinvent Yourself on a Periodic Basis
Lesson 14: Practice What You Preach
Lesson 15: Accept Losses Graciously
Lesson 16: Create Your Own Style of Work to Distinguish Yourself From the Rest
Lesson 17: Don't Procrastinate
Lesson 18: Capitalize on Strengths; Correct or Compensate for Weaknesses
Lesson 19: Compare Yourself With Yourself Rather Than With Others
Lesson 20: Be Ethical All the Way
Lesson 21: Learn To Tolerate Ambiguity
Lesson 22: Don't Shoot Your Mouth Off — in Speaking or in Writing
Lesson 23: Control Self-Pity
Lesson 24: Redefine Yourself as Often as You Need to
Lesson 25: Don't Put Off Your Personal Happiness Forever: Enjoy Your Life

II. Interpersonal Relationships

Lesson 26: You Will Not Succeed in Your Relations With Everyone
Lesson 27: Don't Take Things Personally
Lesson 28: Get It in Writing
Lesson 29: Don't Cover Up
Lesson 30: Actively Seek Out Guidance and Feedback
Lesson 31: Avoid Defensiveness
Lesson 32: Make Friends in the Field
Lesson 33: Be True to Yourself and Let Others Be True to Themselves
Lesson 34: When You Make a Professional Commitment, Honor It If at All Possible
Lesson 35: Give Students and Colleagues Guidance, but Allow Them the Freedom to Find Themselves
Lesson 36: Don't Try to Please Everyone
Lesson 37: Don't Bad-Mouth People Behind Their Backs
Lesson 38: Be Generous With Your Time, but Don't Let Others Rob You of It
Lesson 39: Be Open and Be Straight
Lesson 40: Think Before You Speak
Lesson 41: Networking Matters — Up to a Point
Lesson 42: Distinguish Between More and Less Important Battles
Lesson 43: Don't Hold Grudges
Lesson 44: Stay Away From Exploiters and Parasites
Lesson 45: Help Each Person Find His or Her Own Niche
Lesson 46: Give What You Hope to Get
Lesson 47: Understand the Benefits and Limits of Loyalty
Lesson 48: Maintain Your Good Reputation
Lesson 49: Acceptance Is Not Necessarily Good; Rejection, Not Necessarily Bad
Lesson 50: Don't Accept Someone's Views Just Because He or She Is Supposed to Be an Authority
Lesson 51: Communicate Clearly
Lesson 52: Be a Little Ahead of Others, but Not too Little or too Much
Lesson 53: Let Others Do Your Bragging for You
Lesson 54: Look for Collaborators With Whom the Whole Is More Than the Sum of the Parts
Lesson 55: Be Respectful and Pleasant Toward Others as Much as Possible, but Don't Use Ingratiation
Lesson 56: Deal With the Impossible Problem of "Assassins"

III. Institutions and Academia

Lesson 57: Find Your Mission and Define Success in Terms of Realizing It
Lesson 58: The World Is Not Fair
Lesson 59: The Ivory Tower Is Not Spotless
Lesson 60: Institutional Cultures Are Slow to Change
Lesson 61: Fuse Teaching, Research, and Service
Lesson 62: Know What's Expected of You
Lesson 63: Know the Rules and Regulations — Both Formal and Informal — That Affect You
Lesson 64: Love It or Leave It
Lesson 65: Don't Assume That Good Ideas Sell Themselves: Sell Them
Lesson 66: Invent Your Own "Game"
Lesson 67: Nonthreatening Ideas Pay Off in the Short Run, but Threatening Ideas Often Pay Off in the Long Run
Lesson 68: To Persuade Is as Important as to Inform

IV. Problems and Tasks

Lesson 69: Never Get Stuck on Seeing a Problem in Just One Way
Lesson 70: Surmount Obstacles Flexibly
Lesson 71: Nip Problems in the Bud
Lesson 72: Pick Important Problems on Which to Work
Lesson 73: Be Guided by Problems, Not Methods or Fields
Lesson 74: When You Can't Start but Have to, Start Small
Lesson 75: Most Things Take Longer Than You Think They Will
Lesson 76: Seek the Action in the Interactions
Lesson 77: Seek Syntheses of Ideas That on the Surface Seem Incompatible
Lesson 78: Use Converging Operations
Lesson 79: Check Your Work
Lesson 80: Ask Colleagues for Informal Comments on Your Work
Lesson 81: Ask About the Best and Worst Possible Outcomes Before You Even Begin
Lesson 82: Sometimes the Reason We Start Doing Things Is Not the Reason We Continue Doing Them

V. Job and Career

Lesson 83: Be Proactive, Not Reactive
Lesson 84: Turn Defeats Into Opportunities
Lesson 85: Create Opportunities and Take Advantage of Them When They Arise
Lesson 86: You Can Go Very Far on Reflective Hard Work
Lesson 87: Balance Long-Term With Short-Term Goals
Lesson 88: Spread Yourself Neither too Thin nor too Thick
Lesson 89: Specialize, but Not to the Point of Losing the Forest for the Trees
Lesson 90: If You Do It Well, You'll Most Likely Do It Again
Lesson 91: Don't Sell Out
Lesson 92: Luck Seems To Come in Streaks — Both Bad and Good
Lesson 93: Be Patient About Making a Difference
Lesson 94: What May Seem Like a Crushing Blow Now May Later Seem Like a Little Tap Later
Lesson 95: Be Programmatic in Your Work
Lesson 96: All Bad Times Come to an End
Lesson 97: Know When To Move On in Your Work and When Not to
Lesson 98: Strive for Impact
Lesson 99: Seek To Be Remembered for Your Positive, Not Negative, Contributions
Lesson 100: Go Your Own Way and the Rewards Will Follow
Lesson 101: Knowledge Is a Double-Edged Sword
Lesson 101½: Don't Just Read It, Do It

References

Index

About the Author

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Psychology 101 : The Unspoken Rules for Success in Academia

Summary

Author Biography

Table of Contents

Supplemental Materials