My colleagues and I recently argued that scientists-in-training would benefit from developing an individual science communication strategy. We’re not the first to suggest this, and we recommend reading Practical science communication strategies for graduate students (Kuehne & colleagues, 2014) and Considerations for effective science communication (Cooke & colleagues, 2017) to help early-career and in-training scientists start to
create such a strategy. But I’m feeling like it needs to be said again: scientists would benefit from developing an individual science communication strategy.
I’m a little troubled by workshops and resources that teach scientists how to do #scicomm (that is, web 2.0, social media heavy science communication) without any consideration or even a brief mention as to whether this is a fitting strategy. By jumping immediately to how to build a personal brand, choose a hashtag, and decide how often to post on 7 different social media platforms, the assumption is made that developing your own social media brand is the best strategy.
Building a lively and energized following on multiple platforms is an effective strategy for many scientists, and it may also be a valuable strategy for you. But, have you given enough attention to other possible modes of science communication that may be a better fit with your goals, available energy, and personal strengths?