The field of neuroscience moves quickly.
Every week, new papers push boundaries: AI models that simulate cognitive memory, brain organoids used to uncover mechanisms of neurodevelopmental disorders, or connectomic maps that reveal unseen neuronal communication. These discoveries are exciting—and important—but for those of us still in training, they can also make the pace of our own work feel…slow.
As a master’s student in biomedical sciences at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center and a researcher at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, I’ve spent long days troubleshooting experiments, organizing cell culture work, and learning lab management skills alongside protocols in neurobiology.
So here’s the honest truth: behind every major neuroscience breakthrough are months (sometimes years) of patient, repetitive, and mentally taxing work. If you’re not careful, the pressure to rush to the next result can cloud the reason you’re here in the first place.
Why the process matters
In my undergraduate, I was fortunate to study behavioral neuroscience and psychology while also majoring in journalism. I learned how to tell a story while also learning how to extract a mouse brain. It sounds funny, but those two skills came together to teach me something essential: science is storytelling, and good stories take time.
If we approach our research as a race to publish or to perfect, we’ll miss the learning. But if we trust the process—and even learn to enjoy it—we get so much more than data. We get clarity, resilience, and insight.
Recent breakthroughs, realistic timelines
Take the 2024 advancements in stress response signaling and neuronal survival, some of which are beginning to reveal novel pathways in protein folding diseases. These studies relied on basic experiments—many similar to what I study daily with HEK293 cells, cell viability, and molecular tagging.
But what you won’t see in the abstract is the number of failed cultures, the sterile technique retraining, or the weeks of inventory and lab maintenance that supported the science.
The reality is that slow science often leads to strong science.
Growth doesn’t always look like publication—it can be learning to run your first Western blot or managing your first summer student.
Be yourself.
I’ve had to learn this the hardest way. As someone who’s managed lab inventory while preparing conference posters and completing graduate coursework, burnout came fast. It wasn’t until I stepped back and reflected that I realized three lessons:
- You are not your output.
- Your process is just as valuable as your product.
- Your perspective as a researcher with a story to tell is essential to the field.
So, to my fellow graduate students and early-career researchers:
Be true to yourself. If you love writing, write about your science. If you enjoy outreach, get involved. Bring your full self to the bench.
Be kind to yourself. The work we do is hard, but it’s also meaningful.
Don’t rush the reward. The reward is not just the final figure—it’s the moment you finally troubleshoot a protocol, the lab meeting where your voice is heard, or the day you realize, I belong here.
Key takeaways
- New neuroscience is exciting, but it takes time.
- Let your path unfold without comparison.
- Make space for joy in the research process.
- Your story—and your pace—matter.
About the Contributor
