You Chose This

Writing a thesis or dissertation is painful, no doubt about it. You miss out on fun with your family and friends, you have way too much to do, and you're always tired. It's easy to resent the entire process, and sometimes even the people who are part of the process. They are making you read things you don't want to read, write in ways that are challenging for you, and jump through countless other hoops that seem like a waste of time. Sometimes, even much of the time, you think about getting off the crazy train and quitting the program entirely, don't you?

But you're not a victim. Remember, you chose to pursue an advanced degree. You decided to take on the extra work and expense. You selected the university and the content area specialty, and probably also your advisor or committee. No one is forcing you to work on your thesis or dissertation, and you can quit at any time. You can't blame anyone but yourself for your decision.

So quit whining and get back to work.

Inspiration is no Substitute for Hard Work

Waiting for some inspiration (divine or otherwise) to strike before you sit down to work on that thesis or dissertation? Just keep waiting, then, and don't plan on ever getting those letters after your name.

Writing, and finishing, your document is going to take a lot more than a few bursts of creativity. More than anything, you need time at the computer, whether it's productive time or not. Writing takes the self-discipline to sit there and struggle with the hard parts of your paper, the parts that just don't make sense, and the parts you really don't want to even think about.  Some sections will be so difficult you'll want to quit your course of study entirely. But if you ever hope to finish, you must have the courage to face them.

The good part? Dispatching those tough times as quickly as possible will allow you to get to the fun stuff even faster.

Sleep: It Is Possible

You have to sleep at some point. The human body can take a lot of abuse, and working on your master's or doctorate will provide plenty of opportunity for you to test your limits of self-inflicted torture. But if you don't find a way to sleep at least some times during your grad/doctoral work you are not going to last.

I understand. There is too much to read, write, and think about to sleep. You have work to do, your family to see, friends to text, and data to collect. You need to wade through at least 5 more research studies tonight, and isn't your advisor or committee chair expecting a detailed update on your progress?

But seriously, how effective can you be in the middle of the night? Wouldn't a few hours rest allow you to do even better work tomorrow?

But even when you have turned off the computer for the night, your mind doesn't quit, right? You keep turning over that data issue in your mind, or mentally crafting that brilliant concluding paragraph. Maybe you run the list of things you must accomplish tomorrow.

Find a way to shut it down. Take a hot shower. Have sex, have a glass of wine, or both. Read a few minutes of a trashy novel, or do yoga. Anything that helps you turn off the stream of thoughts and worries is worth a few minutes or your precious time. Investing 10 minutes to relax before you even try to sleep can save you a whole lot of tossing and turning.

The Cave: Loneliness in Thesis/Dissertation Writing

Working on your master’s or doctorate can be a lonely endeavor. If you’ve finished with your classes, and are at the writing stage, it can seem like you are trapped in a cave by yourself. Your  friends from your life before grad school, your coworkers, and your family  are miles away. They are enjoying their lives—going to movies and concerts, having bar-b-ques with the neighbors, and even traveling to exotic places on vacation. At least you think that’s what they’re doing, but since you have so little contact with them you can’t really be sure exactly HOW they spend their time. All you know is that all of your time is spent with you chained to your computer, wrestling with that thesis or dissertation. Even if you have the luxury of getting out to a coffee shop to write, you probably still have tunnel vision, and aren’t noticing much of what’s happening around you.  

Focus on your work is good, as it will help you finish as quickly as possible. But remaining in the cave for too long is unhealthy, for body, mind, and spirit. I’m sure you can find 15 minutes on most days to look up from the screen and engage with the real world. Chat with the people in your office, call a friend, or just sit in a busy place and observe. Just venture out of the cave once in a while. You’ll feel less isolated, happier, and more motivated to finish your thesis or dissertation and get on with your life.

Do the Right Thing: Ethics and the Grad-Doc Student

The news came out yesterday that many of the studies touting the beneficial health effects of red wine were falsified, fabricated, and other-wise messed with. The doctor in charge of the studies, who was also the recipient of numerous awards and grants, seems to have manipluated his findings to ensure he found what he was looking for. His career is probably over now, and those of us who imbibe can't really feel like we are truly doing it for our health now. Not only did he ruin his own life, he potentially spoiled something great for a lot of people.

Don't be that guy. In the course of your master's or doctorate, you will have innumerable opportunities to cheat, lie, plagiarize, and make up information outright. For most of the research and writing process, your own sense of personal ethics is the only thing keeping you honest. There is so much information available that it's possible your peers or your professors will never find out if you borrowed one phrase too many from that key piece of research. Or if you "adjusted" your data to fit your needs, or paid some hack to do your work for you. Don't do it, no matter what. If you do it once, it will be that much easier to do it again and again. People will find out eventually, and then everything you have done,  and all you are, will be called into question. You'll deserve the loss of respect and relationships that will come with the discovery that you can't be trusted.

Don't screw it up for yourself and for everyone else. It's just not worth it.

What the Hell am I Doing?

How is it that you find yourself still in school ? What possessed you to take on the challenge of a  master's or doctoral degree? Was it the extra money you’ll make with more education? Maybe you need the credibility at work the next few years of higher education can bring. Or was it a passion for your subject? Just plain boredom, or because your employer is paying for it?

Hopefully, you’ve decided to spend the next few years of your life going to classes, writing papers, and dealing with professors for the right reasons.  Investing serious and time and money chasing something just for the bump in salary or for the ego boost is a recipe for disaster and disappointment. There is no way you will be able to stay motivated to tackle the mountains of work, and accompanying stress , if you are enduring it just for the external rewards. No doubt, those things are nice. And writing those letters after your name never gets old! But, like anything else, it has to come from your heart to be good and worthwhile.

If graduate or doctoral study is imposed on you by work or family pressure, do whatever you can to find your own meaning in at least a small part of it. You won’t survive if you don’t.

Scratch the Itch: Choosing a Thesis or Dissertation Topic

 Some grad/doc students know exactly what they want to write about, but most don't. It seems nearly impossible to narrow down your readings, your field experiences, and your interests to something manageable. But the sooner you decide on your focus, the better.

But choosing a topic that you will live and breathe for the next several months, or maybe even years, is daunting. Scary even. You could choose some obscure topic that only you and your advisor/committee are interested in, and spend your your time and money becoming an expert in something no one will ever need or use. Or you could pick something that is relevant and important in your field, and could even help change the world.

You need to find the "itch" in your particular field. What questions or issues are burning up that area of study? What problems persist in your part of the academic world? What is bothering people?

Then, design your paper or study to "scratch" that itch, and answer those questions.  Find a solution to the problem or a method that could lead to a solution. Don't you want to spend your time and money creating something people, and yourself, can actually use?

So, what are you going to write about?