Two Kinds of Hands

If you stay in any field or profession long enough, you’ll encounter two types of people.

Both have the power to form you into a certain kind of person.

Both have a certain kind of handiwork.

You’ll encounter someone who has not yet earned or accomplished anything but who wields their “status” with demanding force.

Their fists are white-knuckled and bloodied.

They’ve been clinging to the rung of the social ladder just out of their reach and punching down without discretion.

You’ll encounter someone who is a seasoned veteran in their field but who yields their status with disarming impact.

Their palms are calloused and worn.

They’ve been cultivating their own scholarship and are quick to lend a hand.

My first semester as a professor, a student stood in my office and said, “You don’t deserve to be here.”

Later that year a senior scholar in my field that I didn’t even think knew my name sent me a note that said, “Your work has brought much needed clarity. I appreciate you.”

At my first academic conference, I watched an absolute “rock-star” of a scholar field some of the most patronizing questions (more of a comment than a question, iykyk) with kind and calm directness for over an hour.

In that same session, I saw a junior scholar push past a group of students who were waiting to talk to him so he could intercept a well-established author who was trying to buy a sandwich.

There's nothing you can do about how people perceive you, the work you do, the pace with which you do it, the mediums you choose to produce it in, and the social habits you need to develop in order to cope in your context.

You do get to decide which kind of hands you have.