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INSIDE THIS ISSUE - January 23, 2009
1. Note from the Editor (Featuring an ABDSG Reader's Haiku)
2. Inspirational Quotes
3. Dissertation Mindset - A Feature Article by Karen Shue, Ph.D.
4. Another Free Workshop for ABDSG Readers - Starts Feb. 18
January 23, 2009
A Note from the Editor
Tracy Steen, Ph.D.
Dissertation blues
Sleepless nights and endless days
Next year Dr. me
What a great ABD haiku! We knew our audience was exceptional, and that appraisal was confirmed (no surprise to us) with the response to our request for haikus. Next month we'll print several of them. In the meantime, we want to leave the invitation to submit a haiku open for at least another week. To review the background on this haiku invitation, you may want to check out our last issue in case you missed it. Our address for submitting your 5-7-5 poem: steen_t@mail.trc.upenn.edu
Many thanks to all of you who have already sent haikus. The consensus is that it really has been a fun exercise, and a surprisingly relaxing and insightful one.
I love the final shot of optimism in the haiku printed above. Every ABD knows about the dissertation blues referenced in the first line, but it's the sentiment in the last line that propels an ABD. In between is everything required to FINISH the dissertation.
Getting it done, and getting it done within a certain time, is your ultimate aim. ABDs have a unique understanding of that sort of motivation. An article in the New York Times profiled an individual engaged in another kind of intense effort whose determination to get something done within time constraints was truly inspirational and can be motivating to us all:
Jessica Grace Wing was a vivacious and prolific composer who died of cancer at the age of 31, shortly before the performance of her first major composition. Her sound designer said of her, ''I think that was her strongest gift as an artist, beyond her innate aesthetic abilities, that she understood the necessity of getting a thing done within a time frame, with certain resources, with whatever means are available to you. And you don't stop yourself for fear of being imperfect or being judged. You just do it, and it's as good as it can possibly be with all of your energy and soul and brains and guts and hands and eyes, and then you go on to the next one. And I think that's an outstanding way to live.''
An outstanding way to live is what we are all looking for, and these are thoughts worth considering. At a minimum, we are reminded that we are fortunate to still be here with the opportunity to continue the pursuit of our goals.
Separating you from your doctoral goal (a temporary separation) is the dissertation. How do you think about your dissertation, and how would you like to think about it in this new year? Dr Karen Shue has some suggestions on that subject. Be sure to read "Dissertation Mindset." You may find it possible to effect a positive change in your relationship with your dissertation!
Inspirational Quotes
Calvin Coolidge
Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing
is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded
genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated
derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent.
Andrew Carnegie
If you want to be happy, set a goal that commands your thoughts, liberates
your energy and inspires your hopes.
Carl Sandburg
Time is the coin of your life. It is the only coin you have, and only you
can determine how it will be spent. Be careful lest you let other people spend
it for you.
Charles C. Noble
You must have long term goals to keep you from being frustrated by short term
failures.
Credit: The haiku we used in this issue's introduction was composed by Kym
Neck, a doctoral candidate at CUNY. She sent us two others just as clever
and we will print them in our next issue--along with yours?
Dissertation Mindset
by Karen Shue, Ph.D.
How do you think about your dissertation?
If you are like most of the doctoral students with whom I speak, you may see it as:
- one last hoop to jump before life starts
- an onerous task
- a pain in the a** that just has to be done
- an overly complicated, fear-inducing project
- evidence that you don't belong in academia and everyone is going to find
out
We could go on, perhaps...
But I want to go somewhere different with this.
I want to show you why you might be feeling this way about the dissertation and how you can start to change your relationship to the project in front of you.
It's all about a little thing called Mindset. (Or not so little,
actually, but we'll get there.)
The academic environment typically breeds a certain kind of mindset, which
motivation researcher Dr. Carol Dweck called the "Fixed" mindset
in her book Mindset: The New Psychology of Success.
The Fixed Mindset is one that believes our abilities and talents are pretty much set from birth and it is up to us to use those gifts effectively (or risk being "underachievers"). It assumes that we just "are" a certain way and we need to maximize our innate talents and minimize our weaknesses.
Unfortunately, this kind of assumption leads to a number of problems that are all too frequently seen in the academic world. These assumptions include things like …
If you're smart:
- You will understand things quickly
- You will be able to complete tasks easily and independently
- You will not struggle; and if you do, that's a sign that you should
stop and try something else you are good at
- If you aren't quick, don't do things easily, and have to work at something,
at least don't let others see -- they will recognize you as not quite
up to snuff
- It's best to do only things you are "good at"
Sounding familiar?
Take this Fixed mindset and drop it into the doctoral world of completing a dissertation and you have the following picture of "success":
- do it quickly
- be able to take on each task of the project and complete it with ease and
elegance
- don't ever feel overwhelmed, unsure, or need help to progress
- if you do feel the above, make sure no one knows, and seriously consider
that you may not belong in this program
- getting critical feedback is evidence that you are inept and unsuited for
a dactorate
I hear these expectations from students all the time (and distinctly remember it from my own experience!). They are demoralizing at best and freeze one in one's tracks at worst.
We need another way of viewing the dissertation process.
So let's look at the alternative -- what Dweck calls the "Growth"
mindset.
The Growth mindset assumes that we are "becoming," always learning,
and that we can always improve from wherever we currently are if we are only
willing to accept that effort is needed and willing to provide that effort.
So, applying this to our dissertation-think, we get:
- This is a learning project to teach me about how to do independent, meaningful
research projects
- Of course I don't know how to do this -- I've never done one and that's
why I'm learning.
- The roles of my advisor and committee are to help me through this process,
so it's a great idea to use them (or any other resources I can find) -- especially
when I'm feeling stuck or needing feedback on what to do differently. (Hint:
Feedback is valued and a Good Thing.)
- This is a wonderful opportunity to learn about my most productive work habits
so I can continue effectively after graduation and into my "real"
work.
Get that drift? What a different place to be working from, eh?
I'm not saying that this mindset shift is easy to make -- we are amazed in my UnDissertation groups how much the fixed mindset creeps in. We practice at recognizing it and shifting as soon as we hear it -- but I guarantee it can make a difference to your mental and physical energy, your self-confidence, your motivation to keep moving and how you keep moving.
Here's an easy summary of the Fixed and Growth mindsets
Where are you now? Where would you like to be?
|
|
Fixed Traits - Being |
Changing Qualities -- Becoming |
|
Success is about... |
Validating or Proving yourself |
Developing or Stretching yourself |
|
Failure happens when.... |
you're not smart or talented; it's a setback |
you're not growing and reaching |
|
Effort... |
means lack of talent |
makes you talented |
|
Challenge |
Avoid it |
Seek it out |
|
You feel smart when... |
you do something quickly and the best |
you try and progress at something |
|
Success creates a sense of... |
Superiority over others |
Pleasure in your accomplishment |
|
Failure is about... |
Identity -- I'm a failure |
Action -- I failed to... |
|
Failure is... |
Traumatic |
a Learning Opportunity |
|
Focus is on... |
Outcome |
Process regardless of outcome |
Please give it a try and let me know how it's working for you. To find out more, visit my UnDissertation Blog or read Carol Dweck's book on Mindset.
Dr. Karen Shue is a neuropsychologist and "neuro-coach" in Toronto, Ontario.
She received her Ph.D. from McGill University and has been in recovery every
since. Her website is: www.TheUn-Dissertation.com.
You can contact her with questions about coaching at: DrKaren@BrainandHealth.com
or (416) 259-9019. Dr. Karen is currently offering a free 4-session group
coaching experience to the first 8 ready-to-take-action people who respond
to this article. Please email her with your interest and stage of your
dissertation (Beginning? Stuck-along-the-way?) to be included in these introductory
coaching sessions starting soon!
Another Free Workshop for ABDSG Readers
YES YOU CAN!
Using Mindfulness Techniques to Maintain Focus and Reach Completion Without Losing Your Mind
This workshop is designed to help you stay focused on the next immediate step to reaching your goal.
- The first session will consist of an overview of the 6 steps to mindfulness.
- Each subsequent week one step will be highlighted and build on the previous
step.
- Each session will include time for questions, supporting each other and
commitments for action for the next week.
Wednesdays, weekly at 12:00 noon (Eastern) for 7 sessions.
No fee for these first 7 sessions.
The first session will be Wednesday, February 18, 2009.
Please contact Sheila Bissonnette & Alice Rose at sbissonnette@mindspring.com and include ABD Group in the subject line.
Upon e-mail registration you will be provided with the telephone bridge for this class.