Ph.D.

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Overcoming Procrastination

July 14, 2006 in Graduate School, Personal Development, Ph.D. | 5 comments

For last couple of months I have been struggling to overcome procrastination. I can relate my procrastination to my ABD (all but dissertation) status. And it had became a habit for me. I was putting off everything for ‘tomorrow’. It was affecting my life in every possible sphere in every possible way. But now it seems that I am overcoming it gradually. I have not achieved full control but I am on my way. It is not a one day shot. There are some natural stages that I went through before getting some control over it which I’ll tell you now.

Realization: Do you realize that you are procrastinating? Most of the people I have seen do acknowledge that they know that they procrastinate (a lot). That’s good (not the procrastination part), atleast you are aware of what’s happening. But it adds to another problem. It is frustrating when you know about it but are not able to stop it.

Like one of my friends, let’s call him D, who wanted to quit smoking but even after trying for 2-3 years he was just not able to quit it. Though he realized that smoking is injurious to health (physical and mental), he couldn’t control it. It seems that cigarettes controlled him. Same was the case with me. Procrastination was controlling me, my time, and my productivity. I was like a prisoner who desired freedom but was compelled to follow the orders. But atleast I (and D) realized that there is something wrong with it and something needs to be done.

Practical solutions: I tried to overcome procrastination by employing some practical solutions. I used to spend most of my weekends watching TV. Also almost every evening of mine was spent watching Friends, Everybody loves Raymond, Seinfield etc. Finally one day I just shut down that box for good. I am also an addictive web surfer. I used to spend hours infront of the screen googling and browsing through webpages. It was an easily available natural distractor. So, I stopped casual surfing too in an effort to reduce my distraction time. But nothing worked. After some time I was back on the same routine (though I could reduce some TV watching).

Similarly, D also tried different things but in vain. He would quit every other week and start again after couple of days. Reasons varied but everytime he knew he shouldn’t be starting it again.

The reason for such failures can be attributed to the lack of a strong motivation to be able to give it up. We did realize that we have a problem but were not determined enough to solve it. In other words, we didn’t fully realize the negative effects of our habits, may be because there are no short term negative effects. If it doesn’t hurt you in short term, it is less likely you’ll quit it. We tend to be more reactive to things that have short term effects (gain or loss doesn’t matter) than that have long term effects.

Eye opening moment: Finally, there was one weekend when a number things happenned. I won’t go in detail but in that weekend I realized that if I don’t work towards my Ph.D. any harder in order to graduate soon, my (and my close one’s) life would be doomed. I could see myself failing professionally. I visualized how it would affect me and my close ones and believe me, I didn’t like what I saw. That time I knew I want to overcome procrastination no matter what. And since then I have considerably reduced the time killing activities. What helped me most was that image in my mind of what would happen if I don’t control it. Also, I posted a quote by Viktor Frankl on my desk saying, “To life he can only respond by being responsible.” This quote always reminds me of my responsibilities as a human being and I tend to work more aggressively towards my goal.

D could also quit smoking, completely. One day there was an ad asking for student volunteers for some study on effects of smoking and each volunteer was being paid something over $100.00. This caught D’s eyes and he volunteered (for the money of course). Those people took some tests and showed him what healthy lungs look like and how his lungs have deteriorated in comparison. They also gave him an estimate of how many more years he would live if he continued with the same frequency of smoking. That number and the picture of his lungs were engraved in his mind that day. After that whenever he smoked, that number and the picture would haunt him. He even started the reverse countdown. So, finally he decided to quit it completely for good (of course, with the help of some of the practical solutions he had used earlier but this time there was stronger motivation and he was more determined).

From all this, I find that there is nothing impossible but we cannot make it possible till we really, really, really care. A person can be successful in whatever he attempts if he is sincere to the cause. We find things difficult because either we are not sincere in our efforts or we don’t realize the after-effects (long/short term and positive/negative effects).

Life is too short to be wasted in doing things that you don’t want to. Unless you realize how much damage (personal, physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual) it is causing you, you won’t quit. So one of the way to overcome such negative habits is to:

  1. Visualize what will happen if you continue with it.
  2. Visualize what will happen if you quit it.
  3. Try to draw a picture bringing in contrast between the two situations.
  4. If there is a drastic and positive difference, you will be able to quit.
  5. Else re-work on your visualization abilities and go back to step 1.

I said I gained some control over procrastination but not full control because there are many more things that I need to re-organize to overcome it completely (that would be a topic for some other post). I still do put-off things, like right now instead of working on my project I am writing this post but I am glad that it is some-what constructive procrastination.

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Who should do Ph.D. and Why?

July 8, 2006 in Graduate School, Ph.D. | 6 comments

So you are at a stage where you need to decide whether you should do a Ph.D. or not. There can be a number of reasons for you to think of pursuing a Ph.D. But the most basic question you need to answer is that why you want to do it in the first place. This is tough to answer. Before even you start looking for the answers, you need to clear your head of any myths you have about Ph.D. I wish I knew these things earlier. Next you need to self-explore and decide if you have what it takes to do a Ph.D. The following points will help you in assessing your capabilites.

  • Previous research experience: This is not mandatory but it really helps to know what you are getting into. For every Ph.D. aspirant, I would suggest to first do a MS in thesis to get a taste of research. If you can get research experience in industry that would also help you a lot in later phases of your Ph.D.
  • Self confidence: This is an internal quality that only you can build. If you have a slightest doubt on your abilities, better talk to someone or re-evaluate your reasons.
  • Long term goal: Ph.D. is not an end in itself. If it is required for your long term goal then only go for it. Do you know what is your long term goal? Would a Ph.D. help in achieving that goal?
  • Passion: This is really important because you cannot force it or build it. If you are passionate about a research area/topic then only you’ll be willing to sacrifice some of the joys of life to finish your Ph.D.
  • Curiosity: If you are used to the traditional form of learning, Ph.D. might be little difficult for you. It requires you to think differently and question each and everything. Are you curious to know how things work?
  • Creativity: It goes hand in hand with curiosity. Ph.D. requires you to be creative in your thinking and not just curious. You should be able to see things differently from what presented and come up with your own ideas.
  • Analytical thinking/skills: It involves analyzing what you see and developing your own mantra. It defines your ability to see through the things, grasp the gist, and look at it from different angles. Were you comfortable with analytical questions in GRE?
  • Self-motivation: It is important that you have the ability to work on a project without any external motivation and encouragement. There are no midterms or assignments to keep you on the track. There is no way to compare with other students where you stand in your Ph.D. If you are in the habit of doing only what your professor or boss tells you then you are going to face lot of problems to keep yourself motivated throughout your Ph.D. Are you able to write your to-do list by yourself?
  • Adaptability: Even if you are fully prepared for Ph.D., there will be moments when you might need to change your way of thinking to progress successfully. It is never easy and that’s where this quality comes handy. Do you have the ability to change?
  • Vision: Doing a Ph.D. requires a vision. What exactly you want from your Ph.D.? How will it help in your long term goals?

If you think you can fulfill the above mentioned criterion then the next step is to give a reason to your Ph.D. Why you want to do a PhD?

  • Interest in research: If you don’t have any interest in doing research, don’t waste your valuable time in doing PhD. Do something else closer to your interest. PhD is a preparation for a research career (though in later years you might be able to steer your career in other directions). There are many organizations, institutes, and companies where you can work as a research scientist.
  • Academic career: If you want to obtain an academic position then a PhD can brighten your chances. Most of the professors in major universities hold a Ph.D.

What are the benefits of a Ph.D. or a research career?

  • You will meet and work with the brightest people.
  • You will change the way people think.
  • You will change the way people look at computers (or computers look at people).
  • You will explore the unexplored and solve the unsolved.
  • You will define new and betters ways to solve a problem.
  • You will never be bored. There will be always something to explore and solve.
  • You will increase your intellectual capabilities.

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6 Ph.D. Myths Explained

June 22, 2006 in Ph.D. | 5 comments

I write this to explain in my capacity some of the myths which most of the prospective Ph.D. aspirants, 1st year Ph.D. candidates, and their friends and families hold. My intention is not to encourage/discourage anyone to do Ph.D. but to clear some myths and give a clear picture.

  • “It is the ultimate goal of life”: In early years of a Ph.D. program, to most of the students it seems like a goal in itself. But it’s not. It is a beginning. It is a preparation for your research/academic career. It is a stepping stone towards your long-term goal (if you have any).
  • “I’ll be chained to a narrow topic for a lifetime”: Change is the spice of life. You can (will) not work only on your Ph.D. topic for the rest of your life. In fact, many researchers work on a number of different research projects that may not be directly related to their Ph.D. topic.
  • “After Ph.D., I’ll have better job prospects”: The motivation behind doing a Ph.D. should not be just to get a better and higher income job. In fact, very few companies spend on R&D. And it’s not always possible to recover later the loss of income you incur in 3-5 years of Ph.D.
  • “It is a good way to impress others”: Definitely a wrong reason to pursue a Ph.D. You cannot withstand the unrealistic demands of research just to impress others. It feels good only for a while to tell every one that you are doing a Ph.D. and look at their admiring eyes. But sooner or later, you would be hiding from them for not being able to cope up.
  • “It is just another project, no big deal”: If you think it is just another project which takes a little longer than M.S. thesis then you are in for huge disappointment here. The demands of this ‘project’ are difficult and sometimes unrealistic from the projects that you might have been doing till now.
  • “It is a test of my intelligence”: It is not a test of intelligence only but more of persistence and patience. Success comes after a number of failures. A doctoral degree just shows that you are capable of doing research with limited resources.

Now my friends and family would know exactly what I am into.

Please feel free to comment and add more to the list.

Few links:

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