Today, I was fortunate to have an unexpectedly free morning after the Postdoc Monitoring Session scheduled earlier was cancelled. For someone in an administrative role like mine, uninterrupted time during office hours is a rare and precious commodity. Those three to four hours without meetings or official commitments allowed me to focus fully on my personal official tasks — particularly research-related work and publication matters. Alhamdulillah, I managed to complete several important items on my to-do list, and the sense of progress was deeply satisfying. In the busy world of administration, such blocks of time are gold, enabling deep, focused work that is otherwise difficult to achieve amidst back-to-back meetings.

During the morning, I also had the chance to meet Dr. Nor Farahwahida to discuss strategies and review the progress of our Engineering Education PhD student. These one-to-one discussions are crucial in ensuring that students remain on track and that supervisory teams are aligned in their guidance.

After lunch, I attended a mock presentation session at the RMC Meeting Room for Dr. Norhafiza Khalid’s KKP project proposal, which has been shortlisted for presentation in the KKP 2025 Proposal Presentation Session on 21 August 2025. This mock session was an opportunity to refine the proposal pitch and strengthen its content before the actual presentation. It was an engaging session, filled with constructive feedback and ideas for improvement. Unfortunately, I could not stay until the end, as I received an unexpected call from my superior, the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research & Innovation).

I immediately proceeded to his office for a lengthy discussion on a particular matter concerning research funding. The issue at hand was complex, and while we explored several possible solutions, none felt like the perfect fit. We agreed to revisit the topic in greater detail during tomorrow morning’s JKPD meeting, where more stakeholders can weigh in.

By the time the discussion ended, I realised how mentally demanding the day had been. The meeting required deep concentration, critical thinking, and strategic decision-making — the kind of cognitive effort that leaves you both mentally drained and professionally fulfilled.

It was a day of unexpected openings, productive use of precious time, and high-level problem-solving — a reminder that in the world of research management, flexibility and readiness to pivot are as important as planning itself.