As faculty members at academic institutions, we are expected to excel in the three main areas called research, teaching, and outreach (or service), each of which with a different emphasis at different types of academic institutions. By and large, most academic institutions allow faculty the flexibility to pursue research or scholarly activities within the scope of the faculty member's expertise or research agenda. However, faculty would benefit by being willing to venture out into new areas or by seeking new research collaborations. Several suggestions on how to be proactive to succeed in academia will be discussed.