It has been a very full week. I was out of town for work for a few days and had many extracurricular events during the week including tennis, dinner with a girlfriend, and an event at church. I also had a late start this morning because I was out for drinks until the wee hours with my partner –a great deal of fun!!
Despite all of the extra-curricular I managed to maintain a reasonable level of focus on my research. I read several papers, refined my Henley presentation, and had a highly productive meeting with my supervisor. Her feedback on my Research Proposal was generally positive. She also provided some very useful suggestions to consider related to methodology and terminology. Her closing message was essentially: “You are ready to start your dissertation.” This was music to my ears! I am going to continue my preparation for the July colloquium but simultaneously begin refining my dissertation project plan. This way I can commence my research in earnest when I return from the UK.
It is becoming increasingly clear to me how important it will be to manage my time effectively and balance life, work, and research. This week was a good example of taking on too much. I managed to survive, but barely!! The DBA Stage has no external milestones so it will be easy to lose focus on my research. I will need to ensure that my project plan has some key milestones that involve detailed updates to my supervisors or colloquium presentations. This will help me to remain on track. Also, I still need to get better at saying “no” so that I can focus on the items that are of highest priority to me. Balance will be an ongoing battle for me; however, awareness of the struggle ahead is a good starting place.