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Defeating Writing Distractions
PhD students have quite a bit more flexibility in their working day. Sometimes, too much flexibility. What makes it worse is that there are so many sources of distraction around me. I easily use it as an excuse to delay writing my thesis chapters. There’s making sure I am on top of current events and […]
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Of Success and Supportive Workplaces: Wellbeing in the Workplace
I’ve nearly finished transcribing 12 hours of audio-recorded information, which will form the data corpus for my next couple of studies. I am examining the broad area of equality and overcoming barriers in the workplace from a psychological perspective. The data discusses issues from workplace flexibility for everyone through to gender pay gaps. I have […]
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A Tiny Pick-Me-Up Dose mid-PhD
I have been told many, many times that I am wasting my time getting a PhD because I’ll just end up unemployed and poor. It could very well happen, I guess. Still, after being part of the workforce for over a decade, I believe I have a unique skill set that should allow me to […]
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Trying to Get Creative in my Work as a PhD Student
I don’t consider myself a very creative person. I used to think creativity didn’t really factor into my PhD journey. I’ve recently realised how untrue that is. In fact, one of the things I’ve learned is the need to be flexible and adaptable. At some point in my early career researcher life, it was necessary […]
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Getting Over Overthinking
Is it just me or have some of you found periods in your life where you’ve gotten into this habit of overthinking things? I find that this mostly happens to me at particularly stressful times. I find that I try to almost forensically pick apart a problem or a situation but get nowhere near a […]
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Psychology or Environmental Science? Can I do Both?
I was recently given the task of doing some research on current critical issues surrounding justice, such as the discussion around raising the age of criminal responsibility. The work involved data-gathering but also, more interestingly, it entailed having conversations with many different stakeholders involved in the issue. The points of view were diverse. The approaches […]
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Strawberry Mango Fizz
It’s been a very hectic couple of months of scrambling about getting everything done well and on time. However, I am starting to feel like things are very slowly settling down. Having said that, I feel like this may just be a short period of temporary calm before another storm arrives.
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PhD Self-Care Project: It’s Okay to Have a Tough Day
PhD life is riddled with ups and downs. There will be brutally challenging days, and I think some of my peers fear that feeling low or unhappy about their work at times equates to a kind of weakness. I feel like nowadays, we are being made to think that happiness is the only feeling you […]
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Family Away From Home
The first time I moved out of my parents’ home, I was already 24 years old. That’s been the very same house I had lived in since my parents brought me home from the hospital after I was born. I had such a happy, meaningful childhood. I also enjoyed a relatively comfortable and privileged childhood. […]
What’s in a Name?
I finally asked my mum why she and dad decided to name me ‘Ember’. After thousands and thousands of times of being asked for my name and saying, ‘Ember with an “e”,’ I have resorted to using my middle name (Catherine) when ordering coffee and other such things. My mother has told me that she […]
