Hello all you lovely people :)

I know this has been said again and again by others but would really appreciate personal advice! Not all the other situations are identical to mine, so here goes:

I am currently in my sixth month of a PhD in law. I am studying from home which is 3 hours drive from the university and so I only go to campus about once a month, if that. I am TERRIBLE when it comes to motivation.

I initially started a PhD on advice from my undergrad supervisor, and because I didn't know what else to do except for the fact I did not want to practice law. I thought about teaching for a bit, and decided doing a PhD would be the best way to satisfy that - study what I was interested in and teach law to undergrads when I had finished. I finally felt like I had made a life decision which was right for me.

Starting the PhD in October, I genuinely did do a fair amount of work. I was reading generally and had a list of stuff to read so it was ok. It all started to go a bit pear shaped after Christmas. Before Christmas I met my supervisor and he advised me to read philosophical works in full relating to the theory of my thesis, which I did over the Christmas hols, albeit at snails pace because I thought I deserved a proper Christmas break for once! (The first time since I was about 14 when I hadn't been working my butt off over the hols). My supervisor was happy with my progress in January but this is when it went downhill really.

Continued....

Continued....

I feel so unmotivated most days. I wake up at 7-8am which isn't late but stay in my pjs until about 10-11 when I shower and get dressed. I do not normally start PhD work until 12 or later and normally stop at about 3-4, if that. Although my supervisor seems to think I am progressing I can't help but feel that I am not. I am finding it increasingly difficult and wondering why I am doing it in the first place. I am all alone everyday in the house with my books, and the thought of sitting in the study to work (I do have a designated work space) fills me with dread. So I sit in the lounge which doesn't help ebcause I associate that with relaxing! I just want to be doing anything other than a PhD. But my partner is paying for all my living expenses and I am using savings my parents gave me when I went to uni to find it (I didnt get a scholarship). I can't help thinking a job would be easier. But then there is the problem of what job. I don't want to practice law. I am not sure I have the mental strength and charisma to be an academic, although I am still attracted to the idea of tutoring law to undergrads. I really dont know what to do. Is it a normal phase of 'I want to quit' like it was through most of my undergrad degree but it turned out well in the end? Or am I fighting a losing battle? I am also conscious of the fact I am getting married in 6 months, and I dont really want to put off having children for 3 years. I am not sure I have the strength to finish this. I am not one for quitting and giving up though and so many people will be disappointed in me, but I dont know what to do.

Cheers for any advice/comments you can give :)

Sorry but can you try to do your work somewhere else, maybe the public library ? Maybe that could help you focus on a few things ?

Hello Crelansley,

Have things improved?

I think you're struggling with two things. The first is the macro issue of whether you want to do a PhD in the first place. Much advice has been dispensed about whether one should stay or quit a PhD. I'm of the opinion that you can make anything work if you have the right strategies and techniques. "Passion" and "interest" can be fleeting anyway. The trick is to learn how to move beyond your emotions and just get stuff done. There are numerous productivity techniques out there. Look them up, start small, but keep at it. It's really like exercise. It's a pain to get started but once you gain some momentum, it should get better. Honestly, being snuggly at home without a fire under bum makes this a lot harder (I know too heh). The only way around that is to be accountable to be someone with your goals. Again, much has been written about this. Look it up. So the upshot is this - learn new techniques, set small goals and be accountable to someone.

The second, more specific issue, is whether you're doing enough in your first year. I'm in my first year and I find myself worrying that I'm not working hard enough because I'm not actually writing. I think a lot of us equate "work" with text on paper. But perhaps the reading you're doing counts for something, even if it's unstructured and isn't really tangible? I think my anxiety is largely due to this. The work's all up in my head, but who else but me can see it?

The only way to get around this is to, again, set goals. That way you can reassure yourself that at the very least, you're working towards them, and that's the best anyone can expect of you. It's also important to keep the big picture in mind. For me, that's the upgrade at the end of the first year. The fact of the matter is as long as you pass it and become a full PHD student, your first year would have been OK. Whether you walk, jog, sprint or a combination of all 3 to the finish line shouldn't matter as long as you reach it on time.

If you need more advice, visit http://thesiswhisperer.com Lots of pearls of wisdom there!

Good luck!

Hi Crelansley,

While I agree with ultimax in that passion and interest are fleeting and you can make anything work for you if you use the right techniques, my reading of your post is that you probably don't really want to do the PhD right now.

I'm going to suggest that you focus on this decision rather than your present behaviours (which may be just your other self's-your unconscious- way of establishing what it thinks!). You say you would like to teach law to undergrads. Many of us would love to do this sort of work-not with law perhaps-but with our own disciplines. But the reality is that this is part of a very hard to achieve academic pathway that tends to require full commitment, and is not a ready option for good students, in term's of just getting that dream academic -just teach to undergrads and potter about doing a nice little project sort of work- many of us dream of!
I know of a few students who have also studied law and don't want to practice though-which is fair enough.

However, you also want to start a family quite shortly and possibly want to work part-time around children perhaps. Do you think perhaps just at this time in life, you might find something more practical suitable? if you want to teach, get a PGCE or its equivalent. Teaching law and English to senior students might be something that you find very satisfying and quite manageable with starting a family and living a life. And if you do this for a year-start your family, do a bit of part-time teaching or so and then later go back for a Masters or PhD, nothing will be lost. Another option would be to go to a career centre or counsellor, or your faculty and find out what your options are for work with a law degree if you don't want to practice. Perhaps you could get a one year sort of social work diploma and become an advisor in a legal centre or something similar. You may have many options you haven't thought about yet.

This is not to say don't continue on...if you decide you genuinely want this doctorate and it is going to lead you somewhere, then look at all of the advice CB and ultimax have given. You can do it...but make sure that you actually want to.

The other thing I would say is that by 6 months in-you may not be writing up the thesis, but it would be a good idea to be taking lots of notes and writing your ideas down-not just keeping them in your head. Just in response to CB's comment-not trying to worry anyone but alarm bells went ringing there. I might be reading too much into this myself. Ah well, alas my holidays are over and I must get off to work for the next term of middle school teaching now. Good luck with it all and just ignore advice if it doesn't fit-it is only one person's opinion remember.