Concept Paper

A concept paper is due on Tuesday for class. Surprisingly, here is where all of the preparatory classes come into play. From the beginning, I have had a general topic that I was interested in studying and now the preliminary research I have done comes in handy. Pulling from a number of different reports and essays that I wrote for other classes, the concept paper is coming together easily.

The books that I have been reading about how to write your dissertation are reassuring. One in particular promotes "messy writing" - make a mess then clean it up. Somehow that is an encouraging way for me to get started -- just begin writing something, forget spelling, grammar, or context, just stream of conscienceness.

My topic is a comfortable place for me and one that I work with daily. There isn't a lot of research on the topic, which makes me feel excited about contributing to the body of knowledge. Everyone says that the process always takes longer than you expect. Another PhD completer told me that she created an outline, did her research, then completed her entire dissertation in four weeks flat. I wonder if she lies about everything?

My goal is to step through the process accumulating knowledge and enjoying the path along the way. So far, its' good