Few things test endurance more than working on a doctoral thesis. This is a “self-portrait” that one of my clients sent to me to share with anyone who’s in the same boat as she is. Do you recognize yourself?
This client has been working on her research topic for a long time. In fact, she’s written a book, and is a practitioner in her area of expertise as well. But it’s taking a long time to get the thesis written, and from time to time she gets weary, as you can tell.
We often talk about the need to be resilient in order to complete a PhD, and that certainly is important. But while resilience is something I need to help me bounce back from setbacks that pop up along the way, I need endurance to stay the course, and putting up with the day-by-day demands of work.
Resilience is a topic for another day, but let’s take a minute to consider what you need to endure as you finish your dissertation. And the first consideration is the amount of support you have. That character in the chair above appears to have been slogging it out alone for quite a while. A friend would probably have suggested visiting a yogi and a dietician. And a PhD coach, of course.
Another piece of advice is to recognize early on that there is no such thing as a “quick” thesis. Yes, you can be efficient, and I have a whole workshop on the “Good Enough” thesis that empasizes excellence without being excessive. However, it’s a good idea to settle in for long haul, even while you’re hoping for a short, easy journey.
And then there’s mindset. It’s commonly known that it takes an average of eight years to complete a PhD program. That’s outrageous in itself, but many people take twice that long. So, decide as soon as you’re accepted into a program that you will pace yourself, be accepting of the inevitable delays, and get support throughout.
Oh! And keep eating and drinking, to avoid turning into a skeleton before your time!