A big week as a budding scientist...

Wow what a rollercoaster of a week it's been. The first half of my week was dominated by one of the projects I'm leading with Eminate (the company I work for) that's looking into measuring probiotic activity in the colon, the middle part was taken up with my thesis (quite a large report that sums up all of my experimental research that I spent 4 years collecting) and then today's been spent explaining the science behind a novel food ingredient to a marketing company. I'm pleased to say that all events this week have gone about as well as I could have hoped for, so I can sigh a breath of relief until tomorrow's challenges arrive. And that's the beauty of working in a small biotech company  - you never know what tomorrow will bring. What I do know is that there will be plenty of conversations about ways in which scientists are trying to make the food supply chain more reliable for future generations, conversations exploring how the food industry can look to address the "waistline" challenge that is upon us. I'm happy to be part of these discussions, offering my view of the world and how I think we can make changes. 

If you'd have asked me over 10 years ago I never thought I would be part of these sorts of discussions, talking about global food strategies and future technologies for delivering food.  From quite a young age I thought I knew what I wanted to be when I grew up, but when I received my GCSE results I realised that I had more upstairs than I first thought, which led me to stay in education. In the end it turns out I love learning, so at the grand age of 28 I can finally say "I've left school". But this time I've left with a doctorate, and I'm pleased as punch that today I received word that all the things I'd written in my thesis had been approved by my examiner. What a rollercoaster of a journey that was, too. 

Looking back, I wouldn't change any of my experiences I've been lucky enough to have as a scientist. From a humble undergraduate (the name you get before you graduate) to today, it's taken over 8 years of university, a handful of job placements, and 3 years of college/sixth form to get here. Not without its moments, of course, like falling short of a grade I needed for my placement year, losing all my final year report that I'd spent weeks writing, and the occasional personal challenges thrown in for good measure. But those moments make it real to me; we all have stuff happening in our lives, but so long as you keep your eye on the ball, you'll get to where you're happy in life, even if it's not where you think you'll be right at this moment.