I'm only two months in to my PhD but I am finding it hard to get motivated. The days go by and I have hardly done any work - other things seem to take up my time -housework, shopping, paperwork etc. My mum is ill so I want to spend time with her, then I feel guilty for not having done any work. My research is part of a project so it is not my own and I have such a wide range of information to digest before I can narrow it down to my own research ideas. The topic is really interesting (Medieval costume in art) but I feel a bit lost. Any advice, encouragement, etc?
Pam

Hi Pam. I'm sorry to hear about your mum's ill health. With regards to your phd, i do not know if you'd or anyone would agree with me or not, but i think it's still early days. Its understandable that the first few months might be a bit hazy and you might lack a clear sense of direction but as time goes by, you will become more focussed anad things will begin to take shape. My advice would be to be patient and carry on.

Best wishes.

Agree - it's so early on and you will come to realise that even when you feel you aren't doing anything especially relevant to your project or have a visible / tangible out-put - mental energy actually counts as a contribution.

The fact that you have thought about it and posted on here actually counts towards your PhD - true!

I'm 7 months in........and still not very motivated. I don't have any idea on what my PhD thesis will be like...