thinking is the new black

Hellooooo!

OK, so as promised (I’m sorry that this post is so v.v. overdue), but here are some reflections on finishing a PhD and my views on how to approach research in general. I honestly don’t feel it’s too useful to be prescriptive about “how to do a PhD” or how to finish a thesis as it is such a subjective journey, which depends on all sorts, such as your support network, super-supervision, institution, money and of course… your personal dynamo.

Umbrella for sun or rain by Ben

Many moons ago I wrote a post on doing a PhD and the 10 perfections. Now, I want to bring up something called the 5 faculties  which again is based on Buddhist practice. However I think this can be applied to any type of research, not just doctural.

1. Faith / confidence. You need an understanding of what you’re confident in before you begin.  This is linked to the wisdom of learning, reading and listening. You then need to reflect on what you’ve learned and this results in a new wisdom. Finally there is the wisdom of insight, when you are able to directly understand  from your experiences.  This is something you just can’t force. It is a result of practice.
2. Energy. This relates to the ‘right’ type of exertion. That which is skillful, honest and comes from the heart. Follow your nose and be true to your instinct. Don’t get drowned out by others ( but do listen to your supers) then exert yourself. A PhD is a marathon not a sprint, but you need constant spurts of effort.
3. Mindfulness. Become familiar with what’s going on in your head. Stop still and notice your thoughts. This is about being in the present with the research and avoiding thinking about where it’s taking you. Difficult if your doing a PhD I know. But try not to think of your data in terms of future chapters and papers. Stand still with it, this noticing is where authentic analysis begins.
4. Concentration. Sounds obvious dunnit.In Buddhism concentration is in part about understanding or knowing the true nature of things. Think of this in terms of epistemology. Ask yourself what is truly knowable through your research and how can you know what you know?
5. Wisdom. In Buddhism this is achived through understanding experience is characterized by  suffering, impermanence, and not self. I’m not going to get into the theory of not-self here. As an expert on identity theory, even I find it very complicated and I feel a post on identity is imminent any way. But what is useful about this view of wisdom for anyone doing research, is that you need to learn to perceive the world in a new way. Remember it’s not necessary to know everything and that your output is part of a complex system of other ideas and things.

Sunrise in Jodphur by sarah lane

In terms of top tips for people doing a PhD I’ve just 1.Do something else.

Obviously do the per her der, but until you can see the finishing post I suggest make sure you have some other things going on. If you’re lucky enough to be FT and have funding them you’re probably contract bound if not duty bound to make it your be and end all, but personally I recommend a job. Leading a seminar  is not fun-time, and don’t let it get to the stage where a conference seems like the ultimate in leisure. Nooooo!  I had no funding so I had to work and  sometimes  I worked FT  in an office with commercial peoples on businessy things and did the PhD when I got home. For me this was a blessing in disguise. Inspiration comes from the most  unexpected of sources, and in doing one, you get focus and clarity for the other. The main thing is when you do something else – you have to be super disciplined and manage your time,  because it’s precious; there just is no room for procrastination.
I’ll say it again. But this time do something fun or relaxing. Whatever floats your boat: taxidermy, pub, playstation. It’s not the same as procrastination trust me. Allow yourself and your mind ‘other time’.  Yoga and meditation worked for me.  When I was putting in 14hours at  a desk, seeing theories swimming around my head in a savant like manner,  I’d go to a 90 min yoga class, followed by a group meditation session. I forgot about: discourse , Apple Inc, participants, logic,logos, font size and 247 pages and 10 chapters and, and, and….Without wishing to sound too evangelical about mediation and mindfulness practise  - it totally rocks. It’s great for developing your concentration  when you need it and is a total anecdote to  stress. Learning to be in the present moment can really help with the anxieties of the last bit of a PhD. Trust me on this. It doesn’t just rock, it rules.  Imagine being in a nice warm room, maybe with a candle and the sounds of chanting. ahhhh..I feel relaxed even typing about it – you see – rocks.

Gluck to anyone thinking about doing, in the middle of, or finishing a PhD. I wish you the very best. I plan to do a post some-when on viva-prep btw.  Also watch out for changes to TITNB, a bit of a face-lift is planned.

As and aside to social theory, for r&r, I’ve been studying the Dharma. A few days ago I came across Paramis or the ten perfections. This is what one needs to achieve to be fully awakened, to have bodhisattva, the road to Buddha.

The 10 perfections are

1. Generosity (dana).
2. Virtue (sila).
3. Renunciation (nekkhamma).
4. Wisdom (panna).
5. Energy (viriya).
6. Patience (khanti).
7. Truthfulness (sacca).
8. Determination (aditthana).
9. Loving-kindness (metta).
10. Equanimity (upekkha).

The 10 perfections strike me as a really good Q.A framework for “writing up” a thesis.

A PhD is an apprenticeship in research. Nevertheless, for the majority of research students it is the single biggest piece of work they will ever produce in their lifetime, and therefore an expression of a significant personal journey. It takes years of devotion and truly is more than research and critical thinking. It’s a commitment to an idea and an “original contribution to knowledge”; it is a massive deal. However, I think that many people get carried away with what I’ll call Magnus opus syndrome. Sometimes it’s very easy to lose sight of the bigger picture and remember where a thesis sits in the scheme of life, all things woo-woo. Universe = BIG Thesis = small.

Anyway that said, I do see a lovely connection with the paramis and trying to get the old per her der finished. Thinking about and applying them to my research and life has certainly helped to get through some of the more difficult times recently. Generosity for instance is the key paramis to achieving the others because it includes all the others. It means being openhearted and letting go of the past or any negative habits. I have found this really helpful by turning it on myself when I’ve had days where I’ve struggled with writers block or haven’t quite achieved what I’d set out at the beginning of the day. It’s about living in the present moment and saying OK never mind about that and refocusing on being skillful in the now.

Paramis aren’t elaborate concepts either, which is one of the things I like about them. Employing the notions of say determination and energy to studying is fairly straightforward, but I also particularly like the ideas of truthfulness, patience, and equanimity.

Obviously one needs to be truthful when presenting an analysis, but I think really listening to what your heart tells you, and being brave enough to be honest about ideas is actually quite hard and occasionally scary. What if they’re rubbish thoughts? What if someone says durrrr – of course, and anyway? Yet, some of my best ideas have been my most uncomplicated ones and in the emerging thesis, I’m being to see that the original contribution to knowledge I’m making comes from simplicity rather than complexity. It’s about stripping away ideas to find ‘a truth’.

A PhD is one looooooooooonnnnnnnnng exercise in patience, in the sense that of course one needs amazing staying power to get to through the other side. Mental endurance if you like – comme ca the Japanese game show. But another sort of patience is also required because a PhD does not come all at once. It really is a series of processes. It can be absolutely infuriating to have to re-draft research proposals, aims and objects over and over, or spend an entire year conducting a literature review on a topic that – OK you become a world expert on for 10 minutes, but can’t bare to discuss with anyone for even 1 minute, because you are sick of hearing words, like for instance “commodity fetishism” or “branding” said aloud in the same utterance. But be patient if you can, because it does all come together. I was chatting with the supers about this only the other day. Although I cursed having to draft, redraft and re-redraft various documents for thesis outline or transfer meetings, because of the process my objectives eventually became razor sharp and one of the most useful tools in allowing me to crack on so quickly now. Know why? The objectives function, and I’ve actually stuck to them. Yup, they’re good.

Equanimity is also very important to Buddhism. In fact it’s fundamental to finding awakening. It is according most dictionaries a type of “mental composure”, especially in the face of adversity. It’s actually one of my favourite words at the moment. It’s to this week, what ambivalent was to last week. It’s difficult when writing up, because it can be pretty intense when you’re immersed, or having to put in long lonely days. Most of time in the final stages of a PhD is spent just with thoughts, and I think this is what is probably both the source of all the stress, and what sends people a bit la la. It’s an experience you can’t really communicate to anyone unless they’ve been through it, which can be a further source of isolation and inequity. This slightly off kilter state of mind can’t be explained to, nor understood by anyone who hasn’t done a PhD. Equanimity can definitely be refined, and I have found the more I meditate on it, the more steady I feel about the task in hand, so the more able I am to get on with it. Cultivating a balance of mind is therefore, extremely useful.

Om Shanti Om