Working on my Concept Paper and feeling dumb!

Thanks for all the comments. I have found something (an approach) that has helped. I am not thinking linear anymore. I opened an Excel spreadsheet and have three columns: Topics, Comment, and Source.

In the Topic column I will have “Leadership, communication, remote employee satisfaction…” these are all the heading of my literature review or categories.

In the Comment column I am just looking through all of the information I have collected and typing my heart out! I am writing the finding of other studies, how it plays into my study, and anything else that comes to mind.

In the Source, well I put the source.

I can easily organize the ideas by topic just by resorting and getting all like topics together. This removes the whole issue with thinking – what comes first, then what comes next, blah, blah, blah.

This is the recommended method for organizing projects and a dissertation is nothing but a huge project. When this hit me last night, I was able to type up two and a half raw pages just based on looking through some of my old notes.

 

I have been working on it since late 2004 and it is just getting bad now. As a real smart person pointed out, any monkey can get through the course work. Don't stop your own progress. Just keep really good notes on all the books and articles you read during the course and you will be better prepared then I am.

 

Flushing the dissertation turd

This is for you, Randell1234.

The Dissertation Turd
Completing a dissertation is sort of like a floating turd in an old bathroom toilet that simply won't flush. No matter how many times you push down on the handle, more water pours into the toilet and the water level rises and threatens to overflow, but it never flushes. It just swirls round and round, but the floating turd simply won't do what you want it to do -- flush. No matter what you do, it stinks. The turd stinks and the bathroom stinks. There is a metal mirror above a rust stained sink that has toilet paper in the drain. Graffiti is everywhere, along with holes in the wall. The door won't lock and stays ajar about a foot. It would probably be safer to pee somewhere outside! Remember this analogy as you suffer in a dissertation process and, if you don't know what you're doing or if you don't know what to write about, then follow these 4 life-saving rules for success:

Four Dissertation Rules for Success
1. You could always attempt to grasp at straws by writing about it anyways. Think creative. Grasp, even if blindly. Write, even if just the basics. An infant falls many times as he attempts to stand. Standing is simply too complicated for an infant to master; and walking is too advanced at this stage of an infants life -- and that's why infants keeps falling down; but they keep trying. You, my friend, are a dissertation infant. What the hell is creativity anyways?

2. They'll invariably challenge you on it and, when they do, dazzle them with more creativity. You may only have a 3% understanding of 100% of the material, but they don't know that; provide them with expository writings about that 3% (think hyperbole) -- and expand on it by just 1% each time they challenge you on it. Eventually, the writings will get so voluminous that it will be difficult for you to keep up with it, but remember, it gets difficult for them (the committee) to keep up with it too.

3. When they reject a paper based on various things, don't get dejected and quit; instead, address the key things that they pointed out, even if it's a minuscule change that you make to it (remember the expository 1% rule i.e. write a lot about nothing). No matter what you do... no matter how accurate or inaccurate your work is... it will get rejected. And when it does, then refer back to rule #1 above.

4. This will be even more challenging and heart wrenching if you don't know what you're doing -- and if you're clueless. In that case, refer back to rule #1 for dissertation infants.

Turd Conclusion
These four rules will replay themselves throughout the process, which can take anywhere from 18 months to several years, depending on the institution. The methodology of turd flushashion is a rite of passage for all dissertation graduates.

 

Have you ever thought of writing children's books?

 

LOL. A PhD friend of mine from Oxford (where they typically use the term thesis) will sometimes ask me "So how's your feces coming along?"

 

Since I am heading in the EdD vein, I wish I would have employed your idea during my MEd - might have saved me some work when I get to that stage of the EdD.

 

Hey Steve,

I am about two weeks away from relocating to NC. Once the dust settles, I will look locally for a good fit and then branch out from there. My interests ultimately look like admin of K-12 or collegiate teaching. If I were to go the distance route again, I'd give Liberty quite a consideration...

 

If you're going to be anywhere near Greenville, Eastern Carolina University may be worth looking at. I have a friend who's wife is working on an EdD from there, and she takes her classes in the evenings and works full-time in Havelock. I'm not entirely sure of the details of the program, but I know she speaks highly of it.

I lived in Havelock before I moved to Maryland. I really enjoyed my time in North Carolina, and who knows, I may move back there someday. There is so much good scuba diving off of the coast there.

 

Randell:

Just keep telling yourself: I'm one of the smart monkeys and I'm going to get this dissertation written!

 

Thanks for the giggle

That is true for many of us.

 

Correction: She's getting her M.Ed. at ECU, according to her husband. She's planning on the Ed.D. afterwards.

 

Hmmmm....

I considered Northcentral's EdD quite heavily before I opted for the MEd through GCU. Now, I'm not sure it would have made much difference. My thinking at the time was BA-MBA-EdD looked suspicious academically and BA-MBA-MEd-EdD seemed explainable...particularly if I wanted to break into collegiate education. There is an extremely well regarded community college locally which might provide employment opportunity potentially. They, however, have been hit hard by recent economic downturns.

I came into education late (38) and would love to break into the online milieu. Quite frankly, it seems there is so much competition that it's hard for unknowns to find steady classes anywhere. I had hoped to transition to teaching online full time and pursue my doctorate concurrently.

 

Update - I am rolling now. It is the first day of class and I turned in my first three assignments. I am on assignment 4 (of 9) and have 10 quality pages written for the literature review section with 30 sources.

Holy crap - I think I can do this. Now I just need to wait for the other shoe to drop

 

Way to go Randell!

 

Nice job Randell!

If I can keep my focus long enough in one program, I may someday join you.

 

You will make it. The lit-review is about 1/3 of the work, if you have cracked that code you are in good shape.

HINT: (And you may already know this), but the easiest thing to do is just modify the annotated bibliography, tying it all together. I don't know how they have changed the process, but once I figured this out I put the lit-review together in about2 days, all 50 pages of it.. because I had really already written it...

 

Good tip but I am doing it backwards. I am building the annotated bibliography from the work I have in the lit review. I am just picking up my books and am shocked to find I have a bunch of stuff already highlighted and notes in the margins. I guess I am overloaded and can't even remember what I did! I have all the stuff, it is just organizing it.

 

Well I turned in assignment 4 which is the Literature Review paper. The assignment called for an overview of the review and should be 1-5 pages. I went a bit further and turned in 8 pages of writing with 30 sources. Here is some of the feedback I got:
Overall: This is absolutely, without question, the best literature review I have ever read! This is far better than any literature review I have ever written. I humbly bow in the presence of a master literature reviewer

I am re-energized about getting this done. I have just turned in assignment 5 of 9 and I am on day 3 of a 12 week class! I guess it helps when you start working on it 2 weeks before the class starts.

 

Congrats, Master reviewer! Hopefully your mojo rubs off on we monkies who have yet to begin.