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THE ALL-BUT-DISSERTATION SURVIVAL GUIDE™ The All-But-Dissertation Survival Guide™ focuses on ways to help its readers more readily overcome the roadblocks that often seem to stand in the way of completing the dissertation. It is read throughout the world. Want to become a coach?New MentorCoach Training Programs launching. Subscribe to our other no-cost ezines: INTERESTED IN WORKING WITH A DISSERTATION
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Devoted to providing practical strategies for completing
your Doctoral Dissertation.™
INSIDE THIS ISSUE - December 22, 2009
2. Feature Article - Review Your ABC's to get to D…the Done Dissertation (by Helen McGlynn, Ph.D.)
December 22, 2009
A Note from the Editor
Tracy Steen, Ph.D.
"The
time has come," the Walrus said,
"To talk of many things:
Of comps, data, ABD
And profs who are as kings."
Lewis Carroll didn't actually include those last two lines in his poem The Walrus and the Carpenter. And what would a walrus know about it anyway? In fact, what would anyone know about it other than you who are in the midst of it and those of us who have been there?
One of those who has been there and endured to tell the tale and share some of her survival secrets is Dr. Helen McGlynn. Don't miss her featured article, Review Your ABC's to get to D…the Done Dissertation. And for something seasonal yet seasonless to contemplate, check out this issue's Inspirational Quotes.
As for the poetic Walrus, regrettably he had nothing helpful to offer you. However, Lewis Carroll imparted a very relevant bit of wisdom through another colorful character:
One day Alice came to a fork in the road and saw a Cheshire cat in a tree. "Which road do I take?" she asked. "Where do you want to go?" was his response. "I don't know," Alice answered. "Then," said the cat, "it doesn't matter."
For many it doesn't matter; but for you it does. You know which road you are on, and you know where you are going!
There will be a few (maybe more) potholes in the road you have chosen, but take the advice of author Barbara Hoffman to ignore those obstacles and "celebrate the journey." Eventually you'll be celebrating the finish line.
"Destiny is not a matter of chance, it is a matter of choice; it is not a thing to be waited for, it is a thing to be achieved." Winston Churchill
Review Your A…B…C's
To Get to D….the Done Dissertation
By Helen McGlynn, Ph.D.
A….You are ABD---ALL BUT DONE! You have endured the rigors of graduate school. You tied your life to classes, schedules and costs. Stamped with the identity of student, you traded your social life for study.
B…Books, lots of them! You wrapped your budget and your time around your books, classes and research.
C… With Comps, came change. Now you are ABD and the pricey, powerful Ph.D. is within your grasp. You are on the last stretch of your journey. The research is fascinating and undiscovered….yours to publish as the recognized "expert."
But you hit a pothole in the road. Plunged into real time, the intense hands-on approach you expect to bring to your research gets a back seat to the realities of daily life. Self-doubt comes through pressure from your committee. Pressure fuels anxiety and further derails your writing.
In this transition time between comps and the Ph.D., the responsibilities of work and family compete with writing time. You are free from an academic schedule….but you are not free! You have choices about time, but only wise choices lead to a done dissertation.
I hit that same pothole. I had the same problems. After comps, life came
crashing in. Family responsibilities and my job consumed daytime hours. I
tried to write at night, and ended up dozing at the keyboard. In bed, I was
anxious and sleepless. I almost quit. In desperation, and with support, I
came up with an ABD schedule and a team.
I called it my A-B-C
system for a done dissertation.
A…Accountable, to myself. I accepted that now I was in charge of my schedule. I had to be accountable to my own-self-imposed timeline.
I shared my accountability guidelines with my advisor and my family, asking for "time off" from some family duties. I spoke with my director at work and devised a schedule of long days and short days, using short days to isolate myself with my computer. My family, advisor, and director became my team, my assets and partners in accountability. My team was willing to accommodate my schedule as long as I had the goal in sight. Humbly I learned to ask for help.
B…No Way Back. There was no way back. I was ABD, and not about to give up. Back was not an option.
With each obstacle, my team helped me brainstorm options. For the qualitative sections, I located some transcription help. A statistician assisted with the quantitative data organization. I paid for some technical services, and a few kind friends gave their expertise freely and without charge. I learned to "Be" with the current phase of writing and not anticipate or dread the next problem. Brainstorming became my mantra. I also learned to "Be Grateful."
C…Commit to your dissertation….and Complete it. An uncompleted dissertation is a waste of energy and resources.
Create and stick with your timeline. Expect crashes. Computers fail, your committee will challenge you, and fatigue temporarily wipes out resolution. Stay focused on completion. A break, some fun, and a good night's sleep restore sanity and commitment.
Consider adding a dissertation coach or trusted mentor to your team to bring accountability, help you see the big picture, and add support throughout the process.
D… I got to Done, and so will you. Develop skills of accountability, don't decide and re-decide, use brainstorming, and get a crew of friends or professionals to push and pull you to completion.
These A-B-C's will bring you through the transition of ABD to done dissertation. The rules are different from your student days. The ball is in your park. But this is not a game of chance. It is choice, your choice to be done--your destiny, if you choose it, to have the prestigious Ph.D.
Helen McGlynn, Ph.D., is a therapist and coach in St. Louis, Missouri, where she currently provides holistic services in partnership with a massage therapist and chiropractor. Positive psychology, inspiration, creative problem solving, and body movement are some of the tools she employs for change. Dr. McGlynn is also on staff at a center that provides mental health services. Other professional activities include speaking to groups about wellness topics, advocating for the homeless, teaching, and occasionally writing. On the fun side she is passionate about tap dancing and performing, and she especially enjoys her family and her faith.
The Inspirational Quotes in this issue weren't picked randomly, but were chosen particularly for this time of year. Whether you celebrate the season or not, it's sometimes difficult to avoid getting caught up in the surrounding hectic holiday pace which can be at odds with things the season is supposed to promote--peace, calm, hope, joy. We wish you an abundance of each of those throughout this holiday season and into the New Year.
Hope is the companion of power, and mother of success; for whoever so
hopes strongly has within him the gift of miracles.
Samuel Smiles
The more tranquil a man becomes, the greater is his success, his influence,
his power for good. Calmness of mind is one of the beautiful jewels of wisdom.
James Allen
My father used to say to me, 'Whenever you get into a jam, whenever you
get into a crisis or an emergency, become the calmest person in the room and
you'll be able to figure your way out of it.'
Rudolph Giuliani
Joy is not in things; it is in us.
Richard Wagner
We should not let our fears hold us back from pursuing our hopes.
John F. Kennedy
Stop worrying about the potholes in the road and celebrate the journey!
Barbara Hoffman
Learn from the past, set vivid, detailed goals for the future, and live
in the only moment of time over which you have any control: now
Denis Waitley