There's
no abiding success without commitment. Anthony Robbins
What does commitment mean in terms of a dissertation? My
guess would be that everyone would have his or her own views on this, but I
will share with you mine. To me, dissertation commitment means first thinking
beyond the paper itself. You want to think about why you are getting your
doctorate and what that means to you. I truly believe it is that level of
thought that will provide the drive to get the paper done.
On a more immediate level, I think commitment is showing up
and being involved- which translates to communicating with your chair, reading
the literature, and working on the paper. Getting done doesn't happen at the
last moment, getting done is a day to day plodding along, doing something on
your dissertation every day. You have to recognize that it is not going to be
easy, some days it is very painful, you will feel rejected at times, and wonder
if you can really do this. It is the commitment to keep going that will see
through the process.
In many ways, making the decision to get your PhD and making
the commitment to get it done are the most important aspects of the
dissertation process. Once these decisions are made, the inertia will carry you
through.
Returning to the quote, what does success mean in the
dissertation context? I believe there are many aspects of this, finishing the
dissertation, attending graduation, being called "doctor" for the
first time, and getting a job. Believe it or not, that is only the beginning of
a new process requiring new goals and new commitments. If you go into academics,
there will be the goals of teaching your first classes, conducting more
research, and moving up the organizational ladder. These elements are the
"abiding success" of the quote.
Commitment. Day to day goals of writing a little more,
reading another article. These will get you done!
Next time, we will look at how to link ideas and literature
in your writing. Do you have an issue or a question
that you would like me to discuss in a future post? Would you like to be a
guest writer? Send me your ideas! leann.stadtlander@waldenu.edu
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