From Overwhelmed to Fired Up
The system your work runs on, and the engine running it. We train both.
Our Participants' Academic Homes
Two things decide a researcher’s productivity: the system the work runs on and the engine running it. Almost every provider trains only the first. If your plans are fine but you cannot execute them, your problem is the engine; if your days are full but nothing accumulates, it is the system. Our approach trains both.
In today's competitive research landscape, mastering personal productivity and project management skills is essential for early-stage researchers to succeed in their current roles and future careers. Our training portfolio covers the full spectrum of formats to suit your training objectives and equip your researchers with practical techniques to confidently and sustainably manage their projects.
Dr. Nadine Sinclair, our lead trainer for Personal Productivity and Project Management, brings 30,000+ hours of hands-on project management experience, built across 18 years as a strategy consultant, at McKinsey and as an independent consultant, across research institutions, pharmaceutical and biotech companies, and government projects. With two decades of experience in academia and corporate environments, Nadine ensures our programmes are rooted in real-world experience. She continues to build her skills with over 1,000 hours of project management each year and is a member of the Planck Academy.
Effective project management significantly impacts research outcomes. According to the Project Management Institute, organisations that undervalue project management see 67% more of their projects fail. Effective project management also reduces stress and improves wellbeing. Managing multiple responsibilities and tight deadlines can be challenging, but with the right skills, researchers can maintain their mental health and overall wellbeing. According to the American Psychological Association, individuals with strong time management and project management skills report 20% lower stress levels and 25% higher job satisfaction.
Our courses help researchers manage their time efficiently, juggle multiple projects, and meet deadlines without compromising quality or their own wellbeing.
What sets us apart
Proven Track Record
More than 1,500 researchers trained across Europe’s leading institutions, and we still measure every long format at both ends.
Expert-Led Training
Every course is taught by someone who does the work for a living, not by a presenter with a slide deck.
Achieving Real Change
Long formats begin and end with validated assessment. When we say it worked, we can show you what moved.
Science-Based Content
Content grounded in behavioural change research and adult learning, updated as the evidence moves for proven effectiveness.
Focus on Early-Stage Researchers
Tailored programmes addressing the specific needs of PhD students and post-doctoral researchers for effective training
Member of Planck Academy
Part of a select group of professional trainers vetted for their expertise and competencies by the Max Planck Society’s Planck Academy (“Project and Process Management” and “Healthy Work and Resilience”).
Training Solutions That Make a Difference
Our training offerings are specifically designed to cater to the needs of early-stage researchers, from brief, impactful presentations to comprehensive programmes aimed at achieving long-term behavioural change. These formats range from short-term awareness sessions to extensive courses that provide in-depth skill development, ensuring that PhD students and post-doctoral researchers receive the targeted training they need to excel in their careers.
Each training format is available for novices (i.e., researchers who have never had training in this area) and experts (i.e., researchers who previously participated in training on the topic and want to deepen their learning and expand their skillset). We also offer tailored training solutions to meet specific institutional needs. Below is a detailed breakdown of each format, highlighting the key aspects and objectives.
These are examples of what each format carries. The full catalogue of our nine workshops, masterclasses and multi-week trainings, organised by objective, is here: browse all workshops & masterclasses →
Our learning formats explained (click to expand):
- Length: 1-2 hours
- Format: Face-to-face or virtual
- Enrollment: closed (single institution)
- Objective: Create awareness
- Scope: Focus on a specific area (e.g. Why resilience matters and 5 techniques you can implement today)
- Length: 0.5-1 day
- Format: Face-to-face or virtual interactive workshops
- Enrollment: closed (single institution)
- Objective: Create or deepen awareness in a specific area
- Scope: Focus on a specific area (e.g. Dealing with distraction and procrastination)
- Length: 2-3 days
- Format: Face-to-face or virtual interactive workshops
- Enrollment: closed (single institution)
- Objective: Create or deepen awareness and practice techniques
- Scope: Broader topic (e.g. Time Management)
- Length: 30 days
- Format: Blended/hybrid learning (self-paced, workshops, course community)
- Enrollment: closed (single institution) or open (multiple institutions)
- Objective: Provide a skill upgrade
- Scope: Achieve measurable and sustainable behavioural change in a specific area (e.g. Focus Better)
- Length: 6-12 weeks
- Format: Blended/hybrid learning (self-paced, workshops, course community)
- Enrollment: closed (single institution) or open (multiple institutions)
- Objective: Drive broader behavioural change
- Scope: Achieve measurable and sustainable behavioural change in a capability (e.g. Project Management and Personal Productivity or Mental Health and Resilience)
Explore our flagship long-form courses Fast Forward and the Resilience Training for Researchers →
What Participants Say:
Hands-On Experience, Real Change
Our training courses have already positively impacted the lives and careers of thousands of researchers.
Hear directly from the participants about their experiences and how our tailored training solutions have helped them achieve measurable success and personal growth.
“I have really enjoyed the course and learned a lot for myself - which is more valuable than a certificate, I would say). Thanks so much for putting this course so carefully together. It is a very helpful one and one required by many of us. It has helped me so much to reconnect with myself and see myself and my character again from a positive angle.”
Vanessa L.
"I would like to thank you from the bottom of my heart for giving me the chance of being a tutor. Also thanks for committing to help me grow with your replies and you Paul with the 1-2-1s.I hope that you realize how much impact you had in our lives and how much of the change we experienced has to do with your support and commitment. You are exceptional and you inspire me to be in my field as good as you are in yours."
Carolina T
"I want to thank you again for gaining back control over my own life and emotions something that I have struggled with for quite a while. I am a very grateful as a person to get that trust and openness from you which also guided me to a new path to establish a life without any regrets."
Martijn T
"I attended Nadine’s workshop Project Management. I pretty enjoyed the two-day course and was continuously amazed by the ideas and methods that I have never thought before. It offered me a new field of vision on how to manage your project most effectively. Nadine is an excellent expert with the unique insight and rich experience in advising and teaching. She knows a lot about how to decrease the pressure in work and create the greatest achievement using the shortest time."
Yin Wu
"I am an organiser of an international student conference that every year brings 200 participants for a 4 day event. Since all the organisers of this conference are student volunteers from different backgrounds and have varied organizational experiences the most important thing for us is to make sure that the organisers learn how to work together in a team this is why we start our efforts with a kick-off workshop hosted by Nadine Sinclair. Nadine goes above and beyond to tailor make her workshop to suit our team she reached out in advance to understand our particular needs and really listened to our previous experiences. Therefore over the course of our workshop Nadine masterfully covered all of the most important aspects that we needed to produce a conference that was described as “the best organised conference I have ever been to” both by participants and the invited speakers."
Marija Liutkute
Explore our Flagship Offering
THE FAST FORWARD PROGRAM
Our signature program for those who want to transform their productivity in just 7 weeks together with a peer-group of like-minded researchers.
Our 7-week Fast Forward program is designed to drive measurable behavioural change, enabling researchers to master personal productivity and project management. This intensive course equips participants with practical strategies and tools to organise their work, lead projects effectively, and maintain peak performance without burning out. Rather than just practicing techniques on theoretical examples, participants will have implemented effective techniques and a working productivity system by the end of the program.
The nine workshops
Nine workshops, not nine formats. Each is built the same way, a kickoff, one or two intensive live days at its heart, self-tracking or short practice to carry it, and follow-up to make it land. What differs is the pattern each one works on, never the shape.
Wellbeing
The Resilience Workshop
One PRI assessment, two outcomes: a personal starting point for every researcher and a benchmarked picture for leadership.
Wellbeing
Imposter Syndrome
Cross-examine the fraud story: where it was written, and how to challenge it with evidence.
Wellbeing
Productivity
Sleep Masterclass
Find out whether your late nights are biology or habit. They need opposite fixes.
Wellbeing
Productivity
Working with Your Biology
Find your real rhythms from your own tracking data, then rebuild your working week around them.
Wellbeing
Productivity
Recovery is training, not reward. Periodise a research career the way sport periodises a season.
Productivity
Working with Your Supervisor
The oldest apprenticeship, minus its safeguards. Two days that rebuild them from below.
Productivity
Perfectionism
For researchers who understand every productivity tool and still cannot press submit.
Productivity
Focus & Attention
The instrument every other research skill runs on: baseline data, two days in person, then a four-week block of daily guided practice.
Productivity
Finding Focus with ADD/ADHD
Understand how your attention actually works, test evidence-based strategies against your own data, and leave with a roadmap you designed.
Download a free chapter and take a peek into Nadine’s #1 International Amazon bestseller for researchers.
ON TRACK WAS RECOMMENDED ON
Ready to see measurable change in your researchers?
Book a 20-minute call with one of our expert trainers to explore how our tailored training solutions can drive meaningful improvements in productivity and wellbeing.
Our trainings go beyond mere credits or a line on a CV, they create measurable behavioural change that leads to lasting success in academia and industry. Partner with us to equip your researchers with the essential skills to thrive and excel.
Many of Our Alumni Move On to Leading Companies
Meet Our Expert Trainers
At Mind Matters, our trainers are more than just instructors, they are seasoned professionals with hands-on experience in their fields. Each year, they continue building on their deep expertise, ensuring participants benefit from the latestinsights and practical knowledge. Between them, they have trained thousands of early-stage researchers and mentored several all the way from PhD to habilitation.
Our courses are designed and delivered by the experts themselves, ensuring that participants receive the highest quality of training directly from those who practice what they teach. Assisted by hand-picked tutors who are distinguishedformer participants, our trainers excel in navigating diverse cultural contexts, having lived and worked in over 30 countries and with more than 40 nationalities. This extensive experience ensures that our training goes beyond ticking a box in your training catalogue to drive real, measurable change.
DR. NADINE SINCLAIR
Nadine is a trusted advisor to corporate and academic leaders and one of the Managing Directors of Mind Matters. Before embarking on her entrepreneurial journey, she was a project manager with McKinsey. A scientist by training and at heart, she conducted her doctoral research at the Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry. Nadine brings close to 30,000 hours of experience in managing projects for research institutions, research foundations, pharmaceutical and biotech companies (including many Fortune 500) and governments. She continues to build her expertise with over 1,000 hours of project management each year. As a neuro leadership expert, she bridges the gap between science and business practices, leveraging the latest insights from neuroscience and behavioural economics to create breakthroughs for her clients.
Reach out to us to help your researchers move from Overwhelmed to Fired Up
Book a 20-minute call and we will map the right training for your researchers, from a single workshop to the full measured trainings.
Our trainings deliver more than knowledge and ticking a box, they drive measurable behavioural change that ensures sustained success in academia and industry. Partner with us to equip your researchers with the core skills they need to thrive and excel in their careers.
HOW WE THINK
The articles are where we work in public: researchers and productivity.