Stop Procrastinating and Complete Your
Dissertation!
http://gradschool.about.com/library/weekly/aa040101a.htm
Are you an ABD (All-But Dissertation) student?
Doctoral dissertation looming over your head like an ominous black cloud? The
dissertation is the most difficult and time consuming academic requirement a
doctoral student faces. It's way too easy to procrastinate and put off writing
under the guise, "I need to read more before I can write." Don't fall
into that trap!
Don't let your dissertation drag you
down. Stop your procrastination. Why do we procrastinate? Research suggests
that students often procrastinate when they perceive the dissertation as an
overwhelming task. Big surprise, huh? Motivation is the biggest problem that
grad students face in writing the dissertation.
A Lonely Time
The
dissertation is a time consuming and lonely process that usually takes about
two years (an often longer). The dissertation often is a major blow to a
graduate student's self esteem. It is not uncommon to feel as if it's an
insurmountable task that will never be completed.
Organization and Time Management are Key
The keys to
completing the dissertation promptly are organization and time management. The
lack of structure is the difficult part of the dissertation because the
student's role is to plan, carry out, and write up a research project
(sometimes several). Structure must be applied in order to complete this task.
One way of providing structure is to
view the dissertation as a series of steps, rather than as one mammoth task.
Motivation may be maintained and even enhanced as each small step is completed.
Organization provides a sense of control, holds procrastination at minimal
levels, and is key to completing the dissertation. How do you get organized?
Outline the small steps needed to complete this
large project.
All too
often, students may feel that their only goal is to finish the thesis. A goal
this large may feel indomitable; break it down into the component tasks. For
example, at the proposal stage, the tasks may be organized as follows: thesis
statement, literature review, method, plan for analyses.
Each of these tasks entails many
smaller tasks. The list for the literature review may consist of an outline of
the topics you wish to discuss, with each outlined as detailed as possible. You
may even wish to list relevant articles in the appropriate places within the
outline. The method will consist of the participants, including items on
locating them, rewards, drafting informed consent forms, locating measures,
describing psychometric properties of the measures, piloting measures, drafting
the procedure, etc.
The hardest parts of writing your
dissertation is starting and staying on track. So how do you write your
dissertation? Read on for tips on how to write your dissertation and
successfully complete your graduate program.
Start Anywhere
In terms of
completing your list of dissertation tasks, it is not necessary to start at the
beginning. In fact, believing that one starts the dissertation proposal by
writing his or her introduction and thesis and ends with the plan for analyses
will detain progress. Begin where you feel comfortable and fill in the gaps.
You will find that you gain momentum with the completion of each small task.
Feeling overwhelmed by any particular task is a sign that you have not broken
it down into small enough pieces.
Make consistent progress writing every day,
even if only for a short period.
Set aside
periods of time to write on a regular basis. Establish a firm schedule. Train
yourself to write in short blocks, for at least an hour a day. All too often we
insist that we need large blocks of time to write. Blocks of time certainly
help the writing process, but the ABD often lacks such resources.
For example, when I was writing the
dissertation, I taught 5 classes as an adjunct at 4 different schools; blocks
of time were difficult to find, other than over the weekend. Aside from
pragmatics, writing at least a little every day keeps the thesis topic fresh in
your mind, leaving you open to new ideas and interpretations. You may even find
yourself thinking about it and making conceptual progress as you complete
mundane tasks such as driving to and from school and work.
Use incentives to assist you in overcoming
procrastination.
Writing
requires consistent, well-organized effort and a system of self-imposed
incentives to overcome procrastination. What kind of incentives work? Although
it depends on the individual, a safe bet is time off from working. I found
vegetation time such as time spent playing computer games to be helpful as an
incentive to reinforce progress.
Methodically break through writer's block.
When it is
difficult to write, talk through your ideas to anyone who will listen, or just
talk out loud to yourself. Write out your thoughts without criticizing them.
Take time to warm up, by writing to clear your thoughts. Get the ideas out
without scrutinizing each sentence; it is often easier to edit than it is to
write.
Work through your ideas by writing, THEN edit
extensively. You will write many drafts of each section of the dissertation; a
first (second, or even third) draft need not approach perfection. In addition,
it is acceptable to use dashes to mark when you cannot find the appropriate
word to express your idea, but want to go on; just remember to fill in the
dashes later. The important thing is that you develop a pattern of producing
some output regularly that output can be edited or even thrown out, but it is
important to produce something.
Recognize and accept the fact that writing is a
time consuming process. Don't rush yourself.
No draft
will be perfect that first time around. Expect to go through several drafts of
each section of your dissertation. Once you feel comfortable with a particular
section, take time away from it. Ask others to read your writing and consider
their comments and criticisms with an open mind. After a few days or a week,
reread the section and edit again; you may be quite surprised by the impact of
a fresh perspective.
Writing the dissertation is much
like running a marathon. The seemingly insurmountable may be attained through a
series of small goals and deadlines. Accomplishing each small goal may provide
additional momentum. Make consistent progress each day, use incentives to
assist you in attaining your goals, and acknowledge that the dissertation will
require time, hard work, and patience. Finally, consider the words of Dag
Hammarskjold: "Never measure the height of a mountain, until you have
reached the top. Then you will see how low it was."