In a career defined by constant questioning, self-doubt can become an occupational hazard. Now, for the first time, a group of Cambridge scientists reveal the personal struggles they’ve faced – and continue to face – as they strive for success.
Hidden behind every successful career story is the reality that progression isn’t often a smooth and easy path. Rejections, setbacks, and the doubts they seed are rarely shared – leaving us to believe that they don’t happen to other people the way they happen to us.
“Unless we’re part of the story, we don’t see the failures that line the path to success,” says Adrian Liston, Professor of Pathology at the University of Cambridge. “You don’t want to tell people that you feel like you’re failing, so you keep it inside and you think you’re the only one. But everyone around you is doing that too.”
Liston is a successful scientist who has run a research lab, together with Professor James Dooley, for almost twenty years. He’s come to see self-doubt as an occupational hazard of a scientific career, in a world where people are working at the boundaries of knowledge and constantly trying to disprove their ideas.
“Science is a very weird career in that we’re judged entirely on those rare successful days, the journal publications, which might come after years of failure. From the outside, people simply look at our successful days and celebrate those,” says Liston.
“But a scientific career is all about trying to understand the unknown, and 95% of the time our experiments will fail. This can be very disorientating when all you see of other people is their success,” he adds.
In a new book published today Liston has brought together personal tales, including his own, to reveal the insecurities and fears felt by scientists at various stages of their careers.
The accounts – from past and present members of his lab group – are honest, surprising, and could help us all.
“Over and over again during my mentoring and tutoring I hear worries like: ‘what if everyone else is smarter than me? What if I can’t do it?’,” says Liston, who is also Equalities Fellow and Postgraduate Welfare Tutor at St Catharine’s College, Cambridge.
Some of the stories he shares in the book are inspirational: written by people who overcame seemingly insurmountable challenges to become scientists, from chronic health issues to restrictive cultural norms. Others are contributed by people earlier in their careers who are still grappling with doubts about their abilities – but refuse to give up.
“I’d love it if people got inspiration from some of these stories,” says Liston. “But the most important thing for me is that people realise they’re not alone when they’re doubting their abilities – it’s a common part of the scientific experience, you just learn to deal with it.”
Liston’s experience is in biomedical sciences, but he suspects the problem of self-doubt is much more widely experienced. Like everyone else, he’s had his share of challenges and failures. Unlike others, he – and his fellow scientists – are willing to share them.
Among those who share their personal stories are:
Professor James Dooley, Department of Pathology
Following a childhood of mental and physical abuse Dooley lived in foster care for over a decade, and slept rough on the streets of Seattle, before trying to get into college without having finished high school.
“I want to show people that you can come from a place where you don’t have any advantages in life and still be successful. While my doubts and desire to be invisible have become quieter over time, they’ve never fully gone away. But now I know how to keep going in spite of them.”
“You have to put the effort in, but once you take the first step it might not be as hard as you think. I met people who saw more potential in me than I saw in myself – I think if people see you’re trying, they want to help.”
Dr Ntombizodwa Makuyana, Postdoctoral Scientist, MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology, and Jesus College
Makuyana grew up in rural Zimbabwe and was expected to prioritise learning how to run a house, in preparation for marriage, over her education. But at school she became fascinated by science and resolved to forge a different future for herself. She shares the doubts she had about taking her own path, and how she balanced these with the drive to change her situation – which led to opportunities she’d never known existed.
“The majority of my female friends got married before we finished secondary school – it’s just how society is where I come from. I want young girls to know that you don’t have to give in to your doubts. You can challenge yourself and be much more than people expect of you.”
“From a young age I often questioned myself, and while I still do at times, I have improved in managing my doubts. Being in Cambridge and seeing women achieve remarkable things is always encouraging and serves as a reminder of my potential and what is possible for me.”
Stavroula Piliou, PhD student, Department of Pathology and Lucy Cavendish College
Following a family move to the UK from Greece when she was young, Piliou’s poor English meant she struggled at school, and later, the challenge of dealing with a chronic autoimmune condition pushed her to question her ability to follow a scientific path. Yet she absolutely refused to quit and now holds a Harding Distinguished Postgraduate Scholarship, awarded to the most talented students from around the world.
“I think it’s important not to let your disability or your background define you. Being diagnosed with a chronic condition can make young people think they need to stop working, or can’t achieve their dreams.”
“I still regularly ask myself if I can do this, but it’s very important not to quit. If you really try, and you don’t give up, you can achieve great things and contribute to society.”
Dr Lydia Makaroff, Chief Executive, Multiple Sclerosis International Federation
Makaroff says when she was finally awarded PhD, that moment of success hid a drawn-out struggle – with an unsupportive supervisor, lack of research funding, and minimal guidance on her work. Her move to a new lab in a different country, and the camaraderie she found there, helped her realise that self-doubt was actually a strength in a scientific career.
“We keep self-doubt to ourselves because we think it’s a sign of weakness, or it means we’re not suited to science. It’s a bit taboo to talk about it in a place like Cambridge where it seems so easy for everyone else. But we all have struggles, and we do all belong.”
“People carry their own insecurities, and often project them outward. When someone tells you that you fall short, it may say as much about their own fears as about your work.”
World-class scientists, like the rest of us, face challenges, failures and rejections throughout their careers. What makes a person successful is that they learn to deal with their doubts, and don’t give up on their ambitions.
“Isolation is one of the most harmful aspects of self-doubt, but fortunately it’s the one we can most easily act on – we just need to share our stories,” says Lison. His book, ‘Self-Doubt: An Anthology of Experiences in the Biomedical Sciences’, is published on 30 January 2026 and available from Amazon and The Great British Bookshop.
Published 29 January 2026
Illustration (top) by Natalie Ng. Photographs by Jacqueline Garget.
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