I can't go for that

What we should avoid doing during the PhD. Plus, the Music Highlight

Photo by Katja Ano on Unsplash

During the PhD, I have mostly had good experiences and I am very fortunate for that. I have met such great people, both online and offline and I have learned a ton from them and in some cases, I have also made friends! I also try (but not always succeed) in keeping a balance in my life. Some days go well, some not so much, depending on all the things I am doing.

However, there are some things that I have seen happening and have heard from others that I would never do, and highly disapprove of in any context.

What should we avoid doing during the PhD?

Not being kind

Whether it is speaking with someone in our field, answering an email that for example rejects us from publishing in their journal, or any other interaction - be kind. Always. It is so important and things can be so much easier and less complicated! And thankfully, if I had to write a list of kind people I have met along the way, I’d have to be writing for at least a month!

Pushing ourselves to burnout

A lot of us have different backgrounds and different contexts that we are doing our PhDs in. We are trying to do multiple things every day: raising kids and pets, giving care to family members who need it, holding jobs to support us, trying to enjoy some free time. If for any reason some day we can do only very little for our PhD, it’s okay - maybe the next day things will be better. Every little step can help. Too many demands upon ourselves can have a negative impact on us. Health issues cannot be reversed if they become serious - we have to be super careful, and caring of ourselves!

Not asking for help

Do you have a question you think is silly? (There’s no silly question, I truly believe that.) Go ahead and ask for help! Ask your supervisors, ask someone from your cohort, even ask someone you have never met, but you know that they know😊I cold-email people and most of the time, I would say a sweeping majority of the time, people answer and are super helpful. They might even refer us to someone else! Don’t wait too much to ask for help.

Avoiding writing until we know enough

The timing will never be right. Even messy notes, jotting down anything we know about a topic can be helpful. We can always fix things later. Imagine how many great ideas we miss writing down, when we delay the writing process!

I can’t go for any of that!😊How about you?

The Music Highlight

Do you like Hall and Oates? I LOVE Hall and Oates!