Destination: Dissertation (A Playlist)

 

 

It’s complicated. It’s twisted. In a relationship, but ready to drop it the minute you text me. Engaged to the latest article on spatial relations. 

No facebook status or emoticon can quite capture the roller coaster relationship of You and Your Dissertation. It is either the Very Best or Very Worst Dissertation in the World at any given moment. You want to tell everyone all about it, and you can’t tell anyone what it’s about. It consumes your heart and your soul. Now that Fall Semester has begun in earnest, I offer my Destination: Dissertation playlist for those in the throes of this relationship right now. So with apologies to The Who, let’s get started!

 

Time to put that new book down. 
Time to don my pensive frown.
Time to get some isolation.
Talkin’ bout my Dissertation!
(Destination: Dissertation)

(1) Find affiliation in your isolation by going on double dates with someone else and their dissertation. But don’t do this too often. Back in the day, I’d meet twice a term with a friend who was working in a very different area. Our late-night talks at our favorite diner allowed us to talk about our dissertations in relaxedly energetic ways.

Song 1: Imagine Dragons, “Destination,” 2013
     These are the days of love and life;
     These are our expectations.
     We stay up late to live tonight.
     This is our destination.

(2) Once you have a good idea of where your dissertation is going, find affiliation by presenting chapters at conferences. It’s time to take your dissertation out to the larger academic world. Writing for audiences beyond your mentor and department really energizes your relationship with your dissertation! Bonus: meeting conference deadlines and showing up with your paper means you got some dissertation work done!

Song 2: Nickel Creek, “Destination,” 2014
     I’ve gotta make a destination,
     find where I belong.
     This time I’ve got no hesitation.
     I’m movin’ on
     (where I belong)

(3) Ride out the days that you have no idea why you’re writing what you’re writing, where it’s going, and when you’ll finish. Write out of sequence when you get stuck. After all, too much linearity is boring–and it slows down the writing process.

Song 3: Missing Persons, “Destination Unknown,” 1982
Life is so strange
Destination unknown
When you don’t know
Your destination.
Something could change
It’s unknown
And then you won’t know.
Destination unknown.

(4) Don’t be surprised if the home stretch is when you flesh out your introduction. Your finish line is most likely your beginning, so don’t waste valuable time trying to write too much of your introduction too soon. Use your dissertation prospectus (aka abstract) to stay on track, tweaking it every few months so you have a clearer sense of where You and Your Dissertation are going. And when you cross that finish line at your defense, be sure to celebrate the occasion!

Song 4: Destination: Move On Up (Suite), 1979
     Move on up towards your destination.
     You may find from time to time complications.

Despite all the ups and downs, you don’t have to break up with your dissertation. Just break any bad habits that come between you and your destination.  –MB