Reverb10 - Day 24: Everything's OK

December 24 Prompt – Everything’s OK

What was the best moment that could serve as proof that everything is going to be alright? And how will you incorporate that discovery into the year ahead?

(Author: Kate Inglis)

I've come across little encouraging moments. The first, and probably most noteworthy was the first PhD course which I took last February.

Finally, other aspects of doing a PhD were discussed. A young assistant professor talked about her experiences. I learned that it is normal that sometimes your progress is slower than expected, or that sometimes it is hard to find your motivation. These were true eye-openers for me.
I thought it was all about stamina, and having "weak" moments was a flaw only seen in "weaker" students. Little did I know about the whole PhD process.

After this course, my own search continued. I read a few books, enrolled for another PhD training course which goes deeper and attended some workshops to sharpen my soft skills. Bit by bit my understanding of the entire process of doing a PhD has been growing, and likewise my confidence in my own research and myself (at least a bit) has grown.