Success in the US is associated with the hustle and grind. People work hard and often push their physical limits to get things done and this is a source of pride. High salaries, quick promotions, and prestigious companies are what people chase. Moreover, people are quite willing to take risks when it comes to their career, whether it comes to quitting jobs on a whim or even trying to take on a completely different field from what they studied or have experience in.

I will not go on and say that French people do not care about salaries, promotions, or prestige at all. That is definitely not true. But they are a lot different in how they express themselves and how they work to achieve it. For example, discussing salary in the workplace is seen negatively and looked down upon because it is a private matter and can be seen as immodest. As for what it means to be successful in France, success does not mean staying up all night long working or pushing one’s limits.

A successful employee in France is not someone who exerts too much pressure on themselves to get more work done, but someone who can work efficiently and accomplish a task without extending the time they are given. An employee who gets the work done and also has the time to invest in their social and personal wellbeing is truly a successful employee. Moreover, people are a lot less likely to take risks and make decisions on a whim when it comes to their career. There is a slower, traditional path people follow that sticks to an expected hierarchy, rather than quick promotions.

For my internship and industry, which would be biomedical research, more specifically in bioinformatics, the same general French standards apply. In academia, people are even more flexible when it comes to hours and I have seen people leave work early to switch to remote work, or not work all five days of the week. Research professors have told me that a successful intern or researcher is someone independent with the right thought process and intellectual mindset to make decisions on data analysis, being autonome or independent. Additionally, being someone agréable or pleasant and nice to work with, getting along with everyone, is essential as well.

At the core, I think there are strong similarities, which applies to any country. Money is still quite important, but people are not trying to become the richest person or chasing the highest title possible, at least not openly. How much money someone has does not define how successful they are for the most part, but rather their intellectual contributions.

I am a bit of a reserved person in general. I avoid talking about how much I earn, what my ambitions are, and all of my other successes with everyone. So in this aspect, I did not face too much difficulty trying to adjust to the expectations of a successful employee who is modest and sticks to traditions. However, there were internal conflicts. I did still need time to let go of the American mindset of grinding and working long hours to be successful.

What I have noticed from people who seem successful in the workplace, such as my supervisors and other PhD students in the lab I have observed, is that they are able to think on the feet spontaneously and come up with alternative ideas to advance a project during meetings. For context, during lab meetings, everyone has a chance to talk about their progress for the week on their respective projects. I noticed the PhD students and postdocs prepared very detailed and comprehensive slideshow presentations. There was an issue with an experiment conducted which led to unexpected results. Often in research, data is noisy and we do not get the results we hope for. This is often influenced by confounding variables or flaws in experiment design. The student was able to quickly suggest a solution to move forward with their project and the PI accepted it.

Another aspect I have noticed is successful students are very collaborative and will often go out of their way to help others. It also goes the other way; students will build a network or use their connections in the building or workplace to find someone who has what they need, whether it is a specific sample or tool. There is literally a special email list for the research facility where people can either offer extra supplies they have or ask for these.

It has been a very enriching and rewarding experience, and I am looking forward to wrapping up my project and making the most out of the little time I have here. There are aspects of the French approach to success that I would love to apply to my own professional life back in the US. I am going to prioritize efficient and balanced work life. There are beautiful things to experience in Paris, but also back home in Pittsburgh, so I am going to be more adventurous and take advantage of it. I will also try to be a more creative, independent student. Most importantly, I want to take a more active role in helping out my colleagues and also not being afraid to ask for resources when I needed.