Whoa. Hello again! I can hardly believe it but yes, 2.5 more weeks of lectures and that’s it for the first semester. (The official semester lasts through end of March because of exam season and internships, but that’s “just details”.) I’ve been really really busy (I’m technically sitting in a statistics seminar as I’m typing… Continue reading Studying psychology, week 9-12, and the origins of “mesmerising”
Author: Lena
Engineering executive turned leadership coach & consultant, public speaker, and psychology student. Fast walker, avid reader, poetry fan, violinist, pianist in the making, and intersectional feminist. Writes about all the above (and, occasionally, trees).
The power of firsts, physics, and future perfect
This is the first edition of my newsletter on leadership, psychology, and all things wonderful. Subscribe to it here. I’ve been thinking about the power of firsts a lot. I’ve had so many first times in my life in the last months: first day at uni, first scientific presentation, first exam, first meetings with lovely… Continue reading The power of firsts, physics, and future perfect
Studying psychology, week 8: whirlwind of a week
First things first: I do spend too much time (and money) at the stationery shop. Not just because of that, the week goes by in an instant. So instead of a deep-dive, I thought I’d write up all the different topics we cover in each lecture & seminar: The week in review Clinical psychology: Lecture:… Continue reading Studying psychology, week 8: whirlwind of a week
Studying psychology, week 7: “Little Albert” experiment & depth perception
The week goes by in a flash. What happened to “Little Albert”? The case of “Little Albert” came up in a few lectures already, and is pretty well-known among psychology students. John B. Watson and Rosalie Rayner ran this experiment on a 9-month-old boy referred as “Albert”, they published the results in 1920. They followed… Continue reading Studying psychology, week 7: “Little Albert” experiment & depth perception
Studying psychology, week 6: Piaget’s model of cognitive development
I feel like I’m starting to get into a groove. The first weeks of not having any clue whatsoever are somewhat over, and I’m starting to genuinely enjoy all of this. The amount of new things that I’m learning every day is almost beyond what I can grasp, and it feels like my horizon is… Continue reading Studying psychology, week 6: Piaget’s model of cognitive development
Studying psychology, week 5: intro to diagnostics manuals and guilt
Uni getting more and more intense week over week, all of us feel the demands of our lectures and seminars increase. Intro to diagnostics manuals & the power of language In clinical psychology, we review ICD-10 and DSM-5, the two main standard works for diagnostics. ICD-10 (International Classification of Diseases) is issued by WHO and… Continue reading Studying psychology, week 5: intro to diagnostics manuals and guilt
Studying psychology, week 3: first presentation as a psychology student on altruism
Preparing for my first presentation at uni & waving synonyms goodbye I start prep for my first presentation as a psychology student together with my classmate M. Just three weeks ago, I had my last presentation at a tech conference. Presenting is one of the very few things at uni that I feel at least… Continue reading Studying psychology, week 3: first presentation as a psychology student on altruism
Studying psychology, week 2: it’s really happening
This is the week our regular schedule of lectures and seminars starts. In the end, we only end up having around 60% of our planned events due to some profs being sick. To be frank, I’m still trying to figure out how all of this works, so I’m not ungrateful for the slow start. And… Continue reading Studying psychology, week 2: it’s really happening
Studying psychology, week 1: everything anew, and the academic quarter
What I’ve been waiting for so long is finally happening: Uni, day one (here’s why). And just a regular grey Monday in October. I take the subway, get to the building complex, and am already completely lost, but at least not alone: another student, also lost, joins me on the search. Eventually we find where… Continue reading Studying psychology, week 1: everything anew, and the academic quarter
Big news: starting a leadership coaching & consulting firm, and going to university
This summer, I made some big and incredibly exciting changes: After many years in engineering leadership positions and in the seventeenth year of my career, I’m starting my own engineering leadership coaching & consulting firm, and I’m studying psychology at the most prestigious university in Germany in the field. [Insert :scream: emoji here.] Continuing my… Continue reading Big news: starting a leadership coaching & consulting firm, and going to university