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Tag: allies

Nathan

Asks, Favours & Requests

Daily Post, Sabbatical

Not all viva prep needs to be done alone.

It’s OK to simply ask, “Can you help me?”

It’s OK to ask for a favour, “It’s not something little, but I really need help. Can you?”

It’s even OK to make a request, “I need this specific thing and I need you to do it, please.”

Supervisors, peers, colleagues, friends, family – all can be there to support you. Given where you are and what you’re doing, given the state of the world, uncertainty and pressure – even if others around you are feeling it too – you can ask. Tell people what you need, when you need it, why you need it, then work with them to get what you need.

And when someone asks you, do your best to help them too.

 

Viva Survivors Summer Sabbatical: I’m taking July, August and September off from new writing to concentrate on other creative projects, so will be sharing a post from the archives every day throughout those months. Today’s post was originally published on June 3rd 2020.

Nathan

Notes To Yourself

Daily Post, Sabbatical

A practice I return to again and again is to leave a note on my desk to help Future-Nathan get started when they sit down for work. It’s a kindness, a little thing to help me get going. I could be tired or stressed when I next arrive for work – but now I have a prompt to help me get going.

Typically the note might be a little to-do list, or something about the first action I need to take. Consider doing something similar when you finish a viva prep task. Could you leave a Post-it Note for Future-You? A short message to get you started next time. It doesn’t have to be something big, it just has to help.

Three short sentences perhaps: what you just did, what you need to do next and one line of encouragement.

Good viva prep needs people supporting a candidate. Be your own supporter!

 

Viva Survivors Summer Sabbatical: I’m taking July, August and September off from new writing to concentrate on other creative projects, so will be sharing a post from the archives every day throughout those months. Today’s post was originally published on September 3rd 2021.

Nathan

Who Do You Know?

Daily Post, Sabbatical

You are the only person who can pass your viva. That does not mean that you have to get ready alone.

Who do you know who can help you prepare?

Who do you know who can help you to feel relaxed?

Who do you know who can ask you relevant questions about your research?

Who do you know who can share their experiences about the viva?

Who do you know who can help you be certain of what to expect?

Who do you know who can support you?

You don’t have to get ready alone.

 

Viva Survivors Summer Sabbatical: I’m taking July, August and September off from new writing to concentrate on other creative projects, so will be sharing a post from the archives every day throughout those months. Today’s post was originally published on November 6th 2020.

Nathan

Understanding

Daily Post, Sabbatical

“What did you do today Nathan?” I tried to show the complexity of the algorithm that I’ve been developing for the last three months. “…Bolognese for tea, OK?”

“How’s it going Nathan? What you been up to, finished that thing yet?” My PhD? Got another nine months, I think I’m on track but it all depends on proving the next result and then getting it all written up. “…Seen anyone else from school?”

My family and friends were very supportive when I was doing my PhD, but they didn’t really get it. Why should they, it had taken me a long time to get it. It wasn’t that they didn’t care, of course they did, but they didn’t understand what I did for the most part.

On the run up to the viva though, it might be useful if your friends and family can get a little understanding of what you’re about to do. Tell them what the viva is all about: it’s the exam at the end of the PhD. Tell them about your examiners and what they’ll be doing. Tell them what you’ll need to do to prepare – and what you might need from them.

It could be a bit of space to yourself, quiet in the evening to read. It could be time, so they’ll need to do the dishes while you mark up your thesis. It could even be telling your boss that you’ll need to arrange a little time off so that you can go to the viva.

Your friends and family are proud of you. Even if they don’t quite understand what you’ve been doing for all this time, they understand that it’s important to you. Help them to understand the end of the PhD and they’ll help you get there.

 

Viva Survivors Summer Sabbatical: I’m taking July, August and September off from new writing to concentrate on other creative projects, so will be sharing a post from the archives every day throughout those months. Today’s post was originally published on July 15th 2017.

Nathan

Asking For Help

Daily Post

It’s better to ask for help before the viva when you know what you need help with. Reflecting on the problem or gap in knowledge can highlight who it’s best to ask.

It’s easier to ask for help before the viva if you do it with plenty of notice. People are busy! The earlier you ask the more likely they are to make time to help you.

It’s more effective to ask for help before the viva if you give yourself plenty of time to put that help into effect. Don’t rush yourself by leaving things.

And more generally, it’s simply better to ask for help before the viva than to try to do it all yourself. You might not need a lot but you’ll feel better for accepting help from your supporters around you.

Nathan

Alone

Daily Post

You are the only person in your viva who can speak for you and your work. The questions and comments from your examiners, the discussion that follows, all of it is is centred on getting you to engage and talk. You, and you alone, can respond.

Before the viva, however, you are not alone – there are many people who can offer you support.

  • Your supervisors provide professional support over a long period of time. As you approach the viva they can share their perspectives and offer a mock viva.
  • Friends and colleagues from your research community can share their stories and listen to your concerns, offering support when able.
  • Friends and family from your non-research life can offer their love and listen. They can help to create a good environment for you to do the work you need to do. Share what you really need.

You get to the viva, alone, but supported. You’re the only one in a position to respond, buoyed by the support and help of many others. You, and you alone, can – and will – rise to this challenge.

Nathan

Help!

Daily Post

There’s a lot of help available for your viva.

The secret is to ask for help before all you can think is “Help!”

  • Your supervisor can answer questions, offer opinions and put your mind at ease.
  • Friends can listen, share their experiences, support you and wish you well.
  • Family and loved ones can help make a space for you to get ready. Perhaps they won’t know what you’re going to be doing at the viva exactly, but they can still support you.
  • Your institution can offer resources, signpost the regulations and perhaps offer sessions or materials to help you feel ready.

Don’t leave any of this to the last minute. Don’t let stress, doubt and worries build up.

Ask for help. Don’t wait for “Help!”

Nathan

A Problem Shared

Daily Post

You’re the only person who can pass your viva, but there are many, many people who can support you before you get that far.

It may be that you just need a little encouragement, but if you have a problem then consider how others could do something practical to help:

  • Your supervisors can help you understand the role of examiners. They can help you unpick how you express your research. They can help you by hosting a mock viva. They can’t solve your problems for you, but if you share them they will do their best.
  • Friends and colleagues can help by understanding what you’re going through. They can share viva expectations or perhaps simply listen while you explain your research and ask questions. If you have a problem they can signpost you towards something that will make a difference.
  • Your family and loved ones may not understand your research! But if you have a problem then they will listen. If you can share the root cause they might have a suggestion that could help. More than anything, if you have a problem, they will want to be there to help.

With the viva, as with many things in life generally, there are problems and there are Problems. There are little things and Big Things. You are not alone. You don’t have to solve every pre-viva problem or Problem by yourself.

You are good, you are skilled, you are capable and knowledgeable – and you are not alone.

Nathan

Reach Out

Daily Post

If your viva is coming up, ask your friends, your colleagues and your supervisor for help. Think about what you need, think about when might be the right time to ask, be specific – but ask. They would want to help.

If you know someone with a viva coming up, get in touch with them. Are they OK? Instead of asking them what they need, offer what you can do. Be clear about how free you are and what you feel able to do.

Every candidate has to pass the viva with their own talent and thesis – but every candidate can also get ready with a helpful band of allies to get them there. Reach out and ask for help, or reach out and offer it.

Nathan

The Pillow Fort Principle

Daily Post

How can you make a sanctuary for yourself before your viva? How can you make a nice space for preparing, or create an environment that is going to help you feel good as well as get ready? It probably won’t involve setting up cushions and a blanket, but the same idea applies: how can you make a safe, sheltered, secluded space that’s comfortable, quiet and just for you?

What do you need to help make this real?

How do you need your friends and family to support you?

How can you take a little pressure out of your situation to help you get ready for your viva?

I could make suggestions, but they wouldn’t be as good as your responses to these questions.

What kind of a viva prep space are you going to make for yourself?

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