Early in his career, professor Maarten Steinbuch was invited to speak at a conference in Norway and told he would be paid for it. This presented him with a dilemma. He could give the money to his department – which felt a bit like adding a drop to the ocean – or keep it himself to spend how he saw fit. If he were to do that, however, Steinbuch felt he should also pay for his own expenses and attend the conference in his own time rather than that of his boss. He decided to resign his position for one day in the week and on that day earn his own money.
