[Mid-Career Series] What Got You Tenure Won’t Get You to Full (Re-Release EP 97)

I explore how the habits, priorities, and systems that helped you earn tenure may actually hold you back from becoming a full professor or advancing in new directions.

If you’ve been feeling like you’re working just as hard but not making meaningful progress. Or, if you’re wondering why your post-tenure years feel less clear than the path that got you here, this episode is for you. I share insights from my own experience and from coaching hundreds of scholars through this exact phase of their careers, helping you see where your energy might be better spent and what needs to evolve as you move forward.

It’s time to rethink your mid-career strategy, make space for the next stage of your scholarly life, and get clear on how to achieve your academic mission without burning out.

Years 1–3: Learn the System and Prove You Belong

In the first few years on the tenure track, your main job is survival. You’re learning how your department works, figuring out who holds influence, and trying to prove that you can deliver on all fronts: research, teaching, and service.

You’re probably focused on saying yes to everything, trying to build credibility and connection. That’s normal, but it’s also the root of habits that can drain you later. 

My advice is to observe and learn: understand what your institution truly values, what gets rewarded, and where you can make the most significant impact. Lay the groundwork for your research and writing rhythm now, prioritizing consistency, not perfection. 

Years 4–6: Consolidate, Focus, and Protect Your Time

Years 4-6 are the push phase. You’re getting closer to the tenure review, and the pressure intensifies. You’ve probably taken on too much, and everything (grant due dates, revisions, teaching prep, committee work) feels urgent.

At this stage, many faculty fall into the “do more” trap, assuming that more publications or more visibility automatically mean more security. But this is where focus matters most. You don’t need to do everything; you need to do the right things. 

My advice here is to narrow your scope and protect your time. Get clear on your academic mission and use that commitment as a filter to discern which projects align best with what you want your legacy to be. Learning to say no isn’t a luxury. It’s a necessity if you want to arrive at tenure with energy left for what comes next.

Post-Tenure: Redefine Success and Rebuild Motivation

Earning tenure can feel like the finish line. It’s not. Many faculty experience an emotional crash after tenure because the structure that kept them moving forward disappears. There’s no longer an external carrot driving your effort, and suddenly you’re asking, “What now?”

This phase is about redefining success on your own terms. Instead of chasing validation from committees or external benchmarks, you need to reconnect with your purpose and envision what legacy you want to create. What kind of scholar do you want to be? What kind of impact do you want your work to have?

Without that clarity, you’ll end up exhausted, filling your time with other people’s demands instead of your own priorities. Post-tenure success requires intentionality in protecting your time, choosing aligned projects, and finding motivation from within rather than from institutional pressure.

What You’re Likely Doing vs. What You Should Be Doing

What you’re likely doing:

• Saying yes to every request that crosses your inbox
• Letting your schedule fill up with meetings and service work
• Trying to prove your value by doing more

What you should be doing instead:

• Setting boundaries around your time and focus
• Creating a long-term vision that drives your daily choices
• Letting go of “shoulds” that no longer serve your next chapter

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“You should be worried about how to focus your career around a clear mission. A lot of times in that early career we’re floundering because we’re trying to figure out who we are outside of our advisor, outside of our previous doctoral studies, or post-doc. We’re trying to figure out who we are, so the faster you can to focus in your career, the easier going up for tenure is going to be.”

“What you should be worried about instead of worrying about getting tenure, is the chain of research that will get your field-altering work out into the world. So, you should put tenure aside, and really look at the research arc you are on and what you need to do to accomplish your research goals. Instead of looking at tenure as the finish line, keep your focus on your line of work, not just on the promotion moment.”

We’re receiving applications for our next cohort of Navigate: Your Writing Roadmap®. Check out the program details and start your application process here.

CONTINUE THE CONVERSATION:

1. Our 12-week Navigate: Your Writing Roadmap® program helps tenure-track womxn and nonbinary professors to publish their backlog of papers so that their voice can have the impact they know is possible. Apply here!
2. Cathy’s book, Making Time to Write: How to Resist the Patriarchy and Take Control of Your Academic Career Through Writing is available in print! Learn how to build your career around your writing practice while shattering the myths of writing every day, accountability, and motivation, doing mindset work that’s going to reshape your writing,and changing academic culture one womxn and nonbinary professor at a time. Get your print copy today or order it for a friend here!
3. If you would like to hear more from Cathy for free, please subscribe to the weekly newsletter, In the Pipeline, at scholarsvoice.org. It’s a newsletter that she personally writes that goes out once a week with writing and publication tips, strategies, inspiration, book reviews and more.

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