![]() In order to get to that point, I need to write and edit and rearrange… a lot. While I am writing my draft and editing it, the last thing I need is to be reminded that eventually this must be a complete, polished, reflection of my expertise and identity as a researcher. docx for this) but I find this both stressful and rigid. Some people prefer to write according to their final submission template (my university has a Word. ![]() Now that my complete dissertation is in my sight, and all that remains is to keep doing what I’m doing. Go figure.įor the last 8 months I’ve used a combination of my own tools and ones provided by the writing center at my university to keep up a daily writing habit. After returning to planning, I find myself much more able to produce meaningful academic work. ![]() I assumed that if I could not do those things it meant I must not be a very good academic at all. It is not a task that takes away from my work, it helps me progress toward finishing.įor the past 5 years or so I bought into the myth that academics should store their knowledge in their brains alone, miraculously bring citations to mind through sheer mental discipline, and write clearly without studying the process of writing itself. Only in this past year have I begun to appreciate the importance planning had on my past success, and recognize that it is not a waste of time, at least not for me. I stopped using a planner, annotating articles, and tidying my library regularly. Once I arrived at graduate school, my planning capabilities helped me make it through an extremely challenging first two years, but by the end of my Master’s I had lost faith in my capability to manage my own work. Luckily this realization came during the gel pen craze so I had lots of tools available! I got through high school and college with flying colors by leaning into my planning habits. I started doing this at age 12 when I realized I am the kind of person who loses track of my belongings, tasks, and conversations without some additional help. Since I can remember, I have been a person who plans things. (Just because I have a lot of time does not mean I should write without a specific purpose!) ![]() For me, this means planning carefully no matter how much time I have to accomplish something. I try to do my work in a way that is intentional and relieves stress. I take a “planful” approach to writing which I’ve learned from my writing teacher, rather than feeling that planning is a waste of time which takes away from writing. Self-directed work is very individual, and I am still in the process of completing the draft of my PhD dissertation (self-imposed due date August 25), but I hope you feel reading this post is worthwhile anyway. I hear hot takes are more convincing with an infographic. ![]()
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