The Upside of Advising

I whine a lot about advising, like this recent post, but today and tomorrow remind me that it is actually one of the cooler parts of the job.  Today, I gave a talk at Laval University, and got to watch one of my former students, Jonathan Paquin, in action.  He has, like many folks, taken on more than he should but he is thriving in a place that is perfect for him.  I also bumped into another former McG student, who was not one of mine, but a student of a colleagues, and it was great to see her doing well, too.  Tomorrow, I present at Bishop's University, where another former student works--Sarah-Myriam Martin-Brûlé--is hosting me. 

Sure, I can lean on my old students to host me for book talks, but the real joy is watching these folks be the professors that they wanted to be--to attain good jobs and then do the stuff--teach, research, heaps of service and all that.  I have seen some of my other students in their prof-jobs, and each time I am kind of thrilled to see them succeed.  The road they travel is tough--and I tend to make it tougher by providing lots more questions than answers.  To see them thrive is just immensely satisfying, and I am very, very proud even as I know that their success has much, much, much more to do with them and not so much with me.  But I can take credit for their success anyway.

As always, I am most proud of Team Steve.  This book tour is not just chock full of skiing and good eating and fun book presentations, but of checking in with some members of the Team.  Glad to see they are doing well.