Acutely Nervous
In the weeks before my viva I didn’t feel nervous.
I was too busy.
I kept myself occupied with reading my thesis a lot, making notes, reading papers, talking to my supervisor and wondering what to do after my PhD was finished. I didn’t have time to be nervous.
Until ten minutes before the start of my viva. I hadn’t slept well the night before and at 9:50am I was tired.
And suddenly I was acutely nervous. One thought occupied my mind: “What if I am just too tired for this? What then?”
Then my examiners arrived, slightly awkward pleasantries ensued and I didn’t have time to think about whether I was tired or not; I was nervous and I had to simply get on with my viva.
Viva prep helps someone get ready. It can also be a helpful distraction from feelings one might not want to face.
“I don’t want to think about that.”
Nervousness is commonly a symptom of anticipating something important; it doesn’t mean that the something is negative and it doesn’t mean that nervousness itself is negative. It’s not usually a comfortable feeling, but it doesn’t have to be bad.
Distraction will only help so much though. Viva prep helps, but in parallel you have to build up your confidence for the viva. You have to build up certainty in yourself, your capability and the work you’ve done. Nervousness won’t disappear, but confidence can take the sting out of it.
Don’t distract from nervousness. Pursue confidence.
PS: to find out a lot more about viva confidence and getting ready, do come to Viva Survivor, this Thursday 5th December 2024. It’s my live webinar about everything to do with the viva, viva prep, expectations, examiners and more. I’ve shared this session over 375 times and I can’t wait to do it this Thursday as well. If you’re thinking about coming registration closes tomorrow at 5pm. Check out the details now – and maybe I’ll see you there 🙂