The future

I had a talk with bigboss a couple of days ago, regarding my job situation.
I was recommended by a couple of people about it, having a heart-to-heart with the bigboss, for several reasons, which I will go into.

Well, I can tell you we had a good discussion.
After the talk, I now know that bigboss has a possibility of two position opening in the next few months - one postdoc to run the local arm of a big, multi-party project; another as a more lab manager type, probably split 50-50 between lab and admin.
The first one appeals to me more, but I don't mind the second - the caveat is that neither are confirmed - no money has appeared in our accounts yet. The money is guaranteed for the first position, but there is no timetable yet to start the project running (although it might start rolling in August). The money, or anything, is not guaranteed for the second.

Another is to write a grant from my current project, which has had an interesting turn lately. We are getting more interesting results by concentrating on the transcriptional activity of the protein X, rather than protein-protein interactions (thank God, I was getting sick of doing IP-westerns).
I told my boss that my money runs out in September, and that, if we were to write a grant, there might be a lag time of one year. Which was quickly dismissed by bigboss who said, and I quote, he "can write a grant and submit in 4 weeks, and get the money into the lab by January next year". Yes, you read that correctly. 4 weeks to write a grant. Unheard of until now. I like a man who can deliver quickly!

There are a few reasons why my friends recommended me to talk to him regarding my situation. One being that it makes no sense at all for me to do another postdoc, since this is my second one. Also, I don't particularly want to be a PI, but enjoy science - I have been looking for a few jobs, like medical writing, grant office jobs, editorial jobs, and, if within a lab, a more permanent, lab manager type position (like running a service kinda position).
I guess they all thought I was good for a lab to have - solid science, solid technique, good practice in labs (!!), and generally like running the lab well. I'm happy to do things like ordering consumables, or make up a rota for cleaning, if it keeps the lab ticking nicely (and me happy).

At the moment in my life, I feel comfortable and confident enough with myself to change careers - especially after seeing a few of my friends doing that, and enjoying it. I know my time as a postdoc is coming to an end, and that I need to move on - either to a more permanent lab-based job, or something with more paperwork. And most of all, I relish this opportunity for a change. It is exciting times.


In the end, what I hoped to get through to bigboss, and I hope he gets it because it is hard getting a cohesive sentence when he is talking, is that:
(1) I have been looking for other jobs within science, like medical writing, admin jobs in a funding body, editorial jobs, grant office jobs, etc.
(2) I wouldn't mind going into a more senior position than just a postdoc where you churn out results. Like a lab manager.
(3) I like working here, and if I don't get a position, then I'll do something else outside the lab.
(4) I won't take up a job he has, if I wasn't convinced of the project - I won't just take the job for the salary.

It's always been hard for me to really understand bigboss - he is quite...weird. So, now, I have done all that I can from my point. Let's see where that takes me.