To anyone considering doing a PhD:
A PhD is a rollercoaster of emotions. It’s not at all about being smart (okay, there’s some element of that), but it’s more about being a hard-worker and putting in the grit. Afterall, you get out what you put in! (1/8)
A PhD is a rollercoaster of emotions. It’s not at all about being smart (okay, there’s some element of that), but it’s more about being a hard-worker and putting in the grit. Afterall, you get out what you put in! (1/8)
You’ve got to be a self-motivated individual because a PhD is very much an exercise of self-discipline. You are in charge of your timetable so it’s easy to stray off of it, so you need to be good at keeping yourself in check. (2/8)
Celebrate every milestone & every little win. People won’t understand how hard it was to purify that compound, or get that bit of analysis or even put that piece of apparatus together, only YOU KNOW, so value it. If it’s important to you, then IT’S IMPORTANT! (3/8)
I once treated myself to a new dress because I finally isolated a compound -sounds crazy to the outsider, but perfectly normal to the PhD-ers! SO TREAT YOURSELF! (4/8)
I thank my PhD for everything it has taught me: a.) resilience – Not every day will be a productive day, there will be bad days and slow weeks, which is perfectly okay! Every Monday is a fresh start. Bounce back and try again. Efforts don’t go unnoticed. (5/8)
b.) dealing with isolation - Only you are working on your project, only you know it as well as you do. There are days, perhaps weeks where it’s intense and it feels like you haven’t seen another human or daylight. So look after yourself! ...Go for a run! (6/8)
c.) Grit – “I thought I understood what grit was …and then I started this PhD.” – Every PhD student ever (7/8)
If you get the offer for a PhD, go for it! It’s only a few years & I guarantee you’ll come out a changed person. What my PhD has taught me I don’t think I would have learnt anywhere else. Would I do this PhD again? Probably not. Am I glad I did it? DEFINITELY. (8/8)
