How to Overcome Challenges on a PhD Journey
At the start of a Doctorate Programme, many of us feel confident and doubtful at the same time. We think we can create new knowledge and discover something no one has before.
There’s a bit of ego in that. If we’re motivated by impact, there might be a lot of ego - we might think we can improve the world. This is not unlike a startup entrepreneur who thinks they’ve discovered a unique opportunity first and think they can make it a reality, a success.
Meanwhile, we might doubt whether we deserve the PhD Candidacy or are good enough to finish (more about impostor syndrome among PhD students, for example, here). Additionally, we might have spoken to others who have obtained a Doctorate or are in the process of doing so and heard that it can be demanding - that it’s not that the academic work is almost unbearable, but it’s the process. We have maybe even seen the statistics and know that only 1-2 % of people obtain a Doctorate.
Still, we think we can be that 1%. Those who struggle a lot didn’t plan enough or are, in some other way, unlike us.
Nevertheless, the reality can be quite different from what you expect.
As far as I know, PhD students do not get much advice on strategies to overcome any challenges that may arise. Unfortunately, it’s still the case for many programs that few colleagues share honestly when struggling. We have to turn to online resources to navigate the PhD journey, but many of them can be quite vague and do not offer practical advice from someone who’s gone through it.
Me back in 2019
I’ve just started the PhD Programme at Loughborough University London. I’m sitting at my desk in the PhD working space, balancing my confidence with my self-doubts, having no idea that in less than six months, a global pandemic would throw all of us the meanest curveball and I wouldn’t return to London in at least four years.
A lack of open conversation about the struggles on the PhD journey limits possibilities for peer learning. What’s worse is it makes us feel like there’s something wrong with us when things around us go wrong. So here’s a strategy guide for when things don’t go as planned.
I wanted to share openly about the challenges I’ve faced in the four and a half years of pursuing a Doctorate and strategies for overcoming them. At the time of writing, I’m in the final stretch, and the challenges listed include issues I’ve personally gone through with lessons learned.
These should not be read as a message not to pursue a Doctorate. I trust you have crystallised your motivations for yourself (if not yet, maybe this resource helps).
This should be read as an honest account of the deep, holistic learning process the PhD Programme can provide. It’s a collection of strategies to use when the PhD journey throws everything you hadn't dealt with in the past on your path. It’s something you can bookmark to return to on a rainy day.
Background: You can read more about my journey and work here and here, but for this blog entry, suffice it to say that:
I started a PhD Programme in London in 2019 to strengthen my career trajectory, improve my professional opportunities, deepen my understanding of a topic I am passionate about and build my network
I have a background in African studies (BA, MA) from the University of Helsinki, Finland (my home country)
I worked in the industry before the PhD Programme and continued to work part-time throughout the experience
I had some savings to get me started, but I have been entirely reliant on research grants, raising funds every year
I’ve been working remotely outside the UK since April 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic
I conducted my fieldwork in Namibia and Zambia in 2021-2022
Challenges one might face in a PhD programme - and how to overcome them
You struggle with impostor syndrome.
Get to know your peers and supervisors to demystify them. They’re just ordinary people who have their troubles, not magical unicorns who are always happy and never make a mistake. You’re not alone. Build self-esteem. Consider therapy.
You have a weird relationship with reading academic articles and keep avoiding them.
See existing literature as work that supports your work, not threats to your original idea. Instead of creating goals for the number of articles read, set goals for new perspectives gained. Approach your work with childlike curiosity.
You feel awkward about writing and keep avoiding it.
It’s easier to edit whatever text there is than an empty page. Can you think of writing as a physical way of thinking and view every sentence, paragraph and page simply as a draft to be edited later? Be inspired by writers, their processes and approaches, for instance, with this “Timeless Advice on Writing: The Collected Wisdom of Great Writers”.
Your funding is uncertain.
After doing everything you can to submit a good grant application, deal with the fear of failure. Create a backup plan that does not include the doctorate. Then let go of the worries to the best of your ability, and trust me, I know it’s hard. Stream your favourite show or enjoy other things that bring you joy. Try your best to continue the work, but know that sometimes your best is to breathe and edit previous work or read a page. Also, know that funders tend to support those they’ve supported from the start, so try to trust that it will work out in one way or another.Your supervisors and you have misaligned expectations or vision of the work.
Know your personal and professional motivations for your research. Stay true to them and yourself. Know your dealbreakers, i.e., what you are willing and unwilling to compromise. Try to talk it out with your supervisors. Follow your gut. Be ready to change universities, institutions or supervisors or leave entirely if it’s a dealbreaker. This is your work, not theirs.
The research process is much like an innovation or a creative process. It demands our positioning in the world. It requires us to share our work in its early stages and challenges our capacity to deal with criticism. No wonder the talks on vulnerability, courage and critique, such as this by Brené Brown, resonate with postgraduates.
6. You lose a research partner.
Pivot. Keep going. Find another way of doing what you want to do. I removed one partner entirely, got a different type of partnership to help with visas and did what I could.
7. You struggle with visa issues during fieldwork.
Get creative about solutions. Can you get a private-sector partner to host your visa? What can you offer them in exchange?
8. You struggle with all the administrative tasks related to your research.
Accept that everything you love to do comes with some degree of stuff that makes you yawn, frown or yell out of frustration (decide what degree is acceptable to you and treat it as a dealbreaker; see point 5). This is an inevitable part of a programme. Allocate these tasks as a part of your work week. Just do it.
9. You struggle with motivation.
No one is 100% motivated all the time. Remind yourself of your motivations and how this work fits your life plan, career goals and Ikigai. List ten reasons to do this as a reminder of why you started. Try to make them bigger than yourself (i.e. “I want to do what I can to improve the horrible situation of youth unemployment in Sub-Saharan Africa”) - but don’t create more pressure on yourself. If that doesn’t work, take a break. Take a walk or watch Netflix and let your mind process this in the background.
10. You struggle with anxiety.
High-functioning anxiety is a thing. This path challenges you on a deep level and demands a ton more from people like us (see more here). Get really good at managing it. Meditate. Exercise. Sing. Dance. Garden. Go on long walks. Read. Seek out resources like this one. Consider therapy.
11. You have a burnout.
Step away. Rest. Seek help. Map the mental patterns that caused it, then rewire the patterns. Consider therapy.
12. You have a personal crisis of some kind (There’s suddenly a global pandemic and it threatens you and your work. You have to move. You break up with a partner. You have an existential crisis of some sort. There’s a family emergency or some utter bollocks thing that just wholly tilts the ground under your feet.)
Rest. Take time for yourself. Update timelines. Seek for a Leave of Absence. Take care. Life continues during the PhD journey and it does so after it.
13. You have another crisis of whatever kind.
See points 11 and 12. This work is never as important as your health. But this is getting a bit excessive now. Do everything you can to calm down your environment and focus on setting up a conducive environment for a ‘just enough’ performance (‘just enough’ because we are not aiming for perfect here).
Me in November 2021. I had just submitted another annual progress review report after doing a field visit in Lusaka, Zambia while also collecting data from Namibia online. It was intense and trust me - I did not plan it that way.
14. You lose a supervisor.
Maybe they change universities, or something else happens, causing an end to your relationship. Appreciate the supervisor(s) you have, and thank the one you lost in your acknowledgements. Grieve.
15. You lose the data analysis you worked hard on (or some other work) and must re-do it.
This is objectively tough. Take a breather. Take a day, maybe a week. Cry. Maybe revisit point 9. Then buckle up. Do what you gotta do.
“I only hope it is some good. I have very grave doubts sometimes. I don’t want this to seem hurried. It must be just as slow and measured as the rest but I am sure of one thing - it isn’t the great book I had hoped it would be. It’s just a run-of-the-mill book. And the awful thing is that it is absolutely the best I can do. Now to work on it.”
16. Your professional goals change during the research.
Revisit point 9. Can you identify a professional path you can continue with the PhD, re-evaluate your motivation and keep going? If this truly does not serve you anymore, leave the program (apparently the share of those who leave can be as high as 40-60%). I intentionally avoid using the word ‘quit’ here because some of us, who were raised to “never quit”, might find it wildly triggering. Map out your lessons learned, create a new narrative for this part of your life, update your CV with that story and move on.
17. You struggle with procrastination and consistent discipline.
Identify what is causing the procrastination. Shame of failure? Perfectionism? Cultivate identity-based habits (as in "I am a person who prioritises health” as opposed to “I want to go to the gym consistently”). Create an environment that supports these habits. Balance your ambition with self-compassion. Show up despite your worries of inadequacy.
18. You’re afraid of failure.
Define failure. If your fear of failure relates to feedback or moments of sharing about your work (either as a presentation, a poster, a conference paper, or even just talking to your supervisor about it), maybe an actual fear of failure is underneath that fear. Now dig deep. Why are you afraid of failure? If this fear of failure relates to thinking your work will not be as effective, excellent or impactful as you wanted it to be, work towards accepting that this is what you could do under these circumstances. Re-read that John Steinbeck quote above.
Maybe it can help to see failure as data telling you what to do. After all, all research is just an educated perspective on something to be argued against or possibly completely de-bunked at some later point. Approach all work as a draft that you’re getting early feedback on. Apply the Lean Startup method of simply building, measuring and learning from it or design thinking approach to your work.
“Look at failure as data.”
Auri Evokari
Me in 2023, still at it inspite of if all, with more and more learnings in my toolkit and, more importantly, a healthier detachment from the work.
19. You are deeply scared of the viva.
Preparation is everything. Know your work. Submit when it’s good enough. Practice your presentation and argumentation skills. Have a mock viva with your supervisors. Then, surrender to whatever outcome. You’re most likely a lot better than what you think. See point 18.
20. You’re afraid of what happens after the programme.
Let go of the idea of assuming you know what is best for you. Trust that whatever happens will be good enough. Just do the work now.
This blog was written while listening to My Mixtape: Ólafur Arnalds, who’s breathtaking concert at the Southbank Centre in London captivated me in 2019, just after starting my PhD Programme. His music has helped me throughout this intense journey.