Habit, Not Hack: Park the Ego, Protect the Research (PI Edition)

What you tolerate becomes the lab culture.

Dr. Yoon had seen it before:
A bright junior researcher would raise a valid question during a presentation, only to be met with a defensive shrug, a snippy reply, or worse: a barely concealed eye roll.

Sometimes it came from seasoned postdocs.
Sometimes from visiting collaborators. And yes, sometimes even from Dr. Yoon herself.

One time, a PhD student suggested an alternate statistical method during lab meeting. The senior postdoc snapped:
"We've already validated the pipeline. There's no need to overcomplicate it."

The room went quiet. The student never brought it up again.
Dr. Yoon made a mental note but said nothing in the moment.
After all, the postdoc had a deadline. Everyone was stressed.

But over time, Dr. Yoon noticed a shift.
Junior members stopped offering ideas.
People deferred to seniority, even when the logic was shaky.
Lab meetings became less collaborative and more performative.

So she changed the script.

At the next group meeting, she said plainly:
“You can’t mentor someone and also shut them down for asking questions.”
She made it clear: defensiveness isn’t a strength. It’s a signal that growth is being resisted.

From then on, she modeled humility out loud:

• “That’s a fair critique. Let’s look into it.”

• “Great catch. I missed that.”

• “Thanks for the reminder. I forgot we tried that last year.”

She also set expectations with senior team members: Curiosity is a lab value. Defensiveness is not.
Because in this lab, we defend ideas, not egos.

The Habit: Forge a Culture of Curiosity

1.  Model inquiry, not intimidation.
When PIs respond openly to questions, it tells the whole lab: asking is welcome, and changing your mind isn’t a flaw.

2. Interrupt defensiveness early.
If senior members shut others down, intervene. In real-time if possible. In private if needed. Silence is seen as approval.

3. Name humility as a strength.
Celebrate when someone says, “I hadn’t thought of that,” or changes direction after feedback. That’s leadership, not weakness.

For PIs and Research Advisors:

A lab is only as open as its leader allows it to be.
Defensiveness is contagious, but so is curiosity.

Lead with humility. Protect the question. Raise the work.

Those are not hacks.
Those are habits.