What Is the Best Way to Approach Your Dissertation or Thesis? Setting Yourself Up for Success

But, first, before you delve into the hours and hours of research and writing, take a moment to set yourself up for success. Think of it as bicycling up a steep hill on the hardest gear versus on the easiest gear. Both ways, you’ll get there eventually, but the difference in degree of effort is enormou

My point: It is very much worth your while to do some important preparations and take in some important considerations before delving into your dissertation. 

1.     Your relationship with your committee. Always keep in mind that you will only have completed your dissertation after your committee members have signed off on it. So, keep appointments and be respectful, grateful, thoughtful, and diligent in all of your communications with them. Also, know what they can do and are willing to do to help you.

2.      Organization of your materials. Think carefully through how to best create an organization system for your literature review. Devise a system for your sources such that you can find what you need when you need it, know where you are going to use it, and be able to identify within each source the main points, direct quotations you may wish to use, as well the complete citation. This may be more difficult than you think, and yet, it is critical to your success.

3.     Backing up your work. Losing any work will cause distress. Make sure you’ve got it backed up with at least one of the following methods: using iCloud and/or an external hard drive, emailing it to yourself, printing out a hard copy.

4.     Work schedule. Set a weekly schedule to work on your dissertation (e.g., M 9-12, W 3-5, F 2-4). Try it out for a few weeks to see if you can maintain it, and if not, modify it. Then, consider it set in stone. During these hours, you will only be working on your dissertation—even if you spend the time staring at your computer and getting nothing done. 

5.     Don’t expect too much out of yourself. If you create a schedule that is too ambitious, you will be setting yourself up for failure. It’s so much better to say, “I accomplished what I set out to do,” or even, “I didn’t get as much done as I had hoped to,” versus, “I failed.” 

6.     Take frequent breaks. The human brain is only able to fully focus for 1-2 hours at a time. When we try to push past this limit, we end up being less productive, not more. Just as with physical exercise, taking a break during a bike ride, a ski run, or a swim can totally reset the muscles so that you will feel refreshed when you go back to your activity.

7.     Take care of yourself. Consider the dissertation as an athletic event—a marathon. In order to make it across the finish line, you need stamina and to be in good physical and mental health. This requires that you eat well, maintain consistent physical exercise, get good rest, and schedule in entertainment—something you can look forward to. 

8.     Get all the help you can get. Support comes in many forms and from many places. There are school resources (librarian, faculty, support services); fellow students willing to read/edit your manuscript; family and friends willing to bring/make you meals, clean your house, buy groceries; your parents or a favorite aunt willing to offer financial support, such as paying for an editor; and outside professional support (editor, statistician, researcher). Not to be overlooked or underappreciated is your partner who is willing to tolerate your absence, anxiety, and obsessiveness during this time. Finally, be reassured that your dissertation committee is charged with ensuring that you complete your dissertation.  

9.     Avoid disappointment, discouragement, burnout. To continue to make good progress on your dissertation, you need to remain upbeat—which is why it is so important to set yourself up for success. So, maintain a good relationship with your committee, be well organized, back up your work, set up a good work schedule, get support, take care of yourself, and don’t expect too much out of yourself. 

10.  But expect the unexpected. Something unexpected always come up.

Last week, I wrote about Charles’s progress. Today, he sent his completed dissertation to his chair.

Let me hear from you. What concerns do you have about completing your dissertation?

 Next week: the $64 question: What does it cost to get my research project edited?