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Coaching yourself to success: How to manage the PhD Journey (and beyond)

Dr Alma McCarthy

Senior Lecturer & Head of Management Discipline

J.E. Cairnes School of Business and Economics

Welcome & Introductions

About Me

– What do I know about it anyway?

– My own PhD journey

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So as to avoid the dotted element of the figure below…

What are the 3 things you would like to cover during this seminar?

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The positives of doing a PhD

Common PhD Emotions & Challenges

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And there are many more BUT… talking through can helpPeer coaching

Split into 2 groups – Mode: Full time and Part time

Split into 2 sub-groups : Year 1&2 and Year 3&4– 5 per group– Time keeper – 5 minutes per person STRICT – Each person

• Topic• Challenge• Peer coaching

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1. What is PhD success?2. What is career success?

Open Discussion – PhD Challenges

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Research on Time Management

• Most of our time is reacting to events and demands of others

• We confuse urgent with important• The curse of technology• Constantly interrupted and give in too easily to

interruptions• We do not adequately evaluate our time management

habits so hard to address issues• We try to do too much – multitasking (Eoin Whelan’s

work)

What we tend to do

• What we like before what we dislike

• What can be done quickly before what takes time

• What is easy before what is difficult

• What we know to do before what is new for us

• What is urgent before what is important

• What is imposed on us before what we have chosen

Self-reflection

Turn to page 1 of workbook

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“If you fail to plan, you plan to fail”

1. Have you a PhD completion/career plan for:

1. 1-2 years

2. 5 years

3. 10 years

2. Are you reactively or proactively managing your PhD/career?

3. Have you thought about what you want to be doing at retirement age?

PhD/Career Management and Planning

The process of identifying goals,

establishing a plan for pursing those goals, and

taking personal responsibility for

making those goals a reality

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Seminar Review

• Open Q&A forum

• Please complete your learning log p. 4 of workbook

• Final thought…

With positive thinking, positive attitude and hard work, you can and will successfully complete your PhD

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