Be inspired to write

What inspires you to action?  What inspires you to believe? 

Are you inspired by random quotations? Does the unfamiliar or even familiar quotation give you the evidence you need to trust a writer?  

Or does it cause you to wonder?

Successful writers know that a quotation doesn’t speak for itself. If you’re using a quote in your text, you have to explain its relevance to your material and identify the credibility and authority of the quotation’s author. 

But if you want a quotation for your website or for a blog, is it brave or foolhardy to pluck a quotation from an online list of quotations without knowing when or why the author first wrote or said those words?  What do you think?

Sometimes I read a quotation on a website and pause. I wonder how the writer of the website came across that quotation. Did she actually read the full article or speech or book?  Has the quotation been taken out of context? Did she check the source?

I’m always a little suspicious about believing the rest of the text on the website because I have doubts about the use of the quotation.

Even though I am wary about the use of quotations, I am often inspired by a turn of phrase or a fresh word choice.

Today I read an oath which resonated with effort and determination. It had none of the affected quality that I sometimes see in the borrowed words on the occasional website and elsewhere.

I was checking the Special Olympics website for the dates of the Summer Games in Greece. I know someone who will be going to those games.

Just in case you’re interested, the dates are June 25 to July 4, 2011. Beneath the dates on the website is the Special Olympics Athlete Oath:

Let me Win!

But if I Cannot win,

Let me be brave in the attempt!

 If you’re struggling today with your dissertation, stop and take in the context for these words.  Take to heart the line from the oath “Let me be brave in the attempt.”

Just as the Special Olympics athlete is brave in the attempt to win, I urge you to rise bravely to the best that is within you and be inspired to write.

What has inspired you lately?  I would love to hear from you.

Nancy

Nancy Whichard, Ph.D., PCC
Your International Dissertation Coach and Academic Career Coach
http://www.nancywhichard.com
http://www.smarttipsforwriters.com
nancy @ nancywhichard.com

Read Full Post »

How to Deal with Others Invested in Your Dissertation Process, Part II

Several ABD’s have told me over the last few days about issues with parents, spouses, boyfriends or girlfriends, and even friends.

The boyfriend of one of my clients has made it clear that he thinks it’s taking far too long for her to finish her dissertation.  And the process drags on because she hesitates to work late at her office or to work on week-ends because she doesn’t want to irritate or even anger him. Another of my clients broke up with her boyfriend because he said she wasn’t giving the relationship the attention it needed. 

One young woman has told me how she lost friends when she was getting her master’s degree—they said she didn’t spend enough time with them. Now she’s resistant to throwing herself into writing her dissertation.  She doesn’t want to give even more friends a reason to desert her.

Most parents of ABD’s are incredibly supportive, but some parents want to give advice that isn’t welcomed—the unwelcome advice can be barbed or worse. 

I’ve heard stories of parents undercutting their offspring’s decisions in various areas, such as choice of topic.

When one year drags into another, the parents of some ABD’s have compared their adult child’s lack of progress to the quick attainment of a PhD by someone they know. 

 I’ve even heard a couple of stories about truly intolerable behavior from parents who had never completed dissertations themselves.  They had had to settle for remaining an ABD. 

No ABD should put up with emotional abuse, whether it’s from a boyfriend, spouse, or parent. 

But if your dissertation process is affecting your relationships with people who are important to you, people you love, you do have choices. 

People matter.

Has your dissertation process affected your relationships with others?  I hope you’ll contact me and tell me your experience.  I’m sure many people could profit from what you have done to maintain relationships and what you’ve done to take care of yourself.

Until next time,

Nancy

Nancy Whichard, Ph.D., PCC
Your International Dissertation Coach and Academic Career Coach
nancy@nancywhichard.com
www.nancywhichard.com
www.usingyourstrengths.com

Read Full Post »

4 Reasons to Keep Writing Even if You’re Not Sure You’re Going in the Right Direction

Dissertation writers occasionally come to an impasse, unsure of which way to go next.  You’ve probably been in this position.  You want to move forward, but it may seem prudent to wait—wait to see what your committee chair or mentor says, wait until you have a lot more time to read or go through your notes, wait for the muse to strike.

Even if you’re not sure you’re going in the right direction, continuing to write will eventually move you forward.

Here are 4 reasons to write everyday even if you’re feeling uncertain about your writing:
 
1)  Writing generates ideas.  Writing keeps your topic and ideas alive and growing.

2)  Writing every day, even if on some days you write only 2 sentences, fixes the writing habit.  It’s easier to write today if you wrote yesterday.  It will be easier to write tomorrow if you write today.

3) With all that you have going on in your life, you need to write daily to keep your writing in front of you.  If you don’t write for two days, do you even remember where you were when last you wrote?

4)  Writing every day gives you hope.  At the end of the day, you feel more confident and happier if you wrote that day.  You can make a checkmark on your calendar for that day and you can write on your calendar “I wrote today.” 

And you’re one day closer to–

1. Defending your proposal;
2. Finishing your dissertation;
3. Getting on with your life.

How great is that?

This week, as a special gift for signing up for my Smart Tips e-newsletter and to underline the goal of getting on with your life, I will give you a 30-minute call to help you get back on track. Go to my website (www.nwcoaching.com) and sign up for my Smart Tips e-newsletter.

Here’s to moving forward!

Nancy
Your Dissertation Coach
nancy @ nancywhichard.com

Read Full Post »

The Big 3: Goals to Pull You Out of Dissertation-Writing Limbo

You can come up with a gazillion reasons for avoiding your dissertation —too tired, too busy, too stressed, too, too, too.  And you are all of those things.

However, any reason you come up with for not getting to work on your dissertation will seem paltry when put up against the Big 3 Goals:

1. Defend your proposal;
2. Finish your dissertation;
3. Get on with your life.

Which goal is next for you?  I’d love to hear how you’re doing.

Go to my website (www.nwcoaching.com) this week to sign up for my Smart Tips e-newsletter, and 30 minutes of my time will be yours for the asking.  What’s stopping you from reaching your goal?

Looking forward to hearing about what’s between you and your goal,
Nancy
Your Dissertation Coach
nancy @ nancywhichard.com

Read Full Post »

Are There Ever Good Reasons Not to Write Your Dissertation?

There are lots of reasons not to write, or so I hear:

1.  Midwinter blahs.  If you live in an area where January and February are gray and cold, it can be hard to push ahead on your writing.

2.  Seasonal fatigue—oh, wait, that was the roadblock in December. 
No longer an excuse!

3.  Low motivation.  When was the last time you exercised? 

4.  Waiting to talk with advisors. 
Some people tell me they aren’t writing until they can see their advisor or until they can be sure that one direction, rather than another, is the right one. 

The reason for waiting?  They say they don’t want to waste time.

I may be wrong, but putting off writing—even if it’s to get the go-ahead from someone—is wasting time.

How do you deal with reasons that you put in your way for not writing your dissertation?  Are some reasons justified?

I would like to hear what’s in your way.  This week, as a special gift for signing up for my Smart Tips newsletter, I will give you 30 minutes of my time to help you jump start your work in February.  Go to my website (www.nwcoaching.com) and sign up for my no-cost Smart Tips e-newsletter.

All good wishes to you for a great start to February.

Looking forward to hearing from you,
Nancy
Your Dissertation Coach
www.nwcoaching.com

Read Full Post »

During Your Dissertation Daze, Bravely Isolate the Unimportant

When I was writing my dissertation, I tried my best to let go of all that was unimportant. 

I always wanted more time to be with my kids and to do that I had to let go of all but the essential aspects of my teaching. I wasn’t perfect. Even though I tried to compartmentalize, class preparation and paper grading bled into dissertation time and dissertation time bled into family time.  But when the choice was to spend more time on each paper or hold the line on grading and spend time with my kids, I did my best to cut corners on the grading.

I knew that my kids needed to eat good food, do their homework, have activities in their lives about which they were passionate, and know that they meant the world to me.  I wrapped my arms around my kids and let go of a lot of other things.

Mainly what I let go of was any notion of a perfectly kept house, or even a well kept house.  I was ecstatic with whatever anyone did that would move us all one inch closer to a clean house.

Long before I heard of FlyLady and her Ultimate Timer (www.flylady.net), I had cleaning blitzes.  I would decide that whatever I could get done in 10 minutes would be all that needed to be done.  Bathrooms—5 minutes should be all that was needed to spray cleaning fluids here and there and wipe them up.  Sweeping the main floor of the house—5 minutes tops.

I also had to protect myself from situations that would drive me over the brink.  I couldn’t open my house to family members who unexpectedly decided our house would be a good place to stay for their spring vacation.  I had to ask for help and understanding. 

Where are you drawing the line so that you can get some writing done and also take care of yourself and others in your life?  I’d love to hear from you.

I have something that will be of help.  Go to www.nwcoaching.com and get a free sign-up bonus when you subscribe to my Smart Tips for Writers e-newsletter.

Until next time,
Nancy
www.nwcoaching.com
 

Read Full Post »

What Do You Call That if Not Perseverance?

What is it that you think you don’t have, but if you had it, your work would be so much easier?  What is the difference between you and that PhD on the tenure track at a great school?

Over and over, what comes up as my dissertation clients and I talk is the question of perseverance.

Interestingly, my clients think they lack perseverance.  They think this because they find that writing their dissertation is so hard and is taking such a long time.

In their other lives, that part where they aren’t hounded by their dissertation, they pinpoint and complete small tasks.  They know that finishing the small tasks often moves them forward toward a larger goal. 

But they claim they lack perseverance.

They seem surprised when I say that their showing up each week on their phone call with me shows perseverance.

When I praise them for not over-promising on how much they will write during any one week, and, instead, for delivering on real, manageable tasks, they seem surprised that I call that perseverance.

Perseverance does not mean producing a stellar work in near record time.

The key to finishing a dissertation is steady, even if slow, work—week after week of following through on one small task after another.

To persevere, you don’t have to keep your eyes on some huge mountain down the road that you have to climb.  More often, it means just fastening your eye on one pebble ahead of where your foot will fall and keep taking one small step after another.

At my website I  offer a free newsletter. Please sign up for it.  I’d love to hear what you think.

Until next time,
Nancy
www.nwcoaching.com

Read Full Post »