Learning how to take bad habits and reframing into doctoral perfection!
Am I even supposed to be here? I’m just a mom…. with four kids… you know? How can I become credible, and elevate my critical thinking? How can I do those two things as well as produce doctorate level writing that is not natural for me to create? How can I read a book without reading it front to back cover? Am I even doing this correctly? Well… turns out that I am not. However, I am and will always be a driven goal crushing individual. I don’t have to know how to do this but what I have within is a drive that refuses to take no as an answer.
My notes are novels. When I was going through my associates, bachelors, and masters I thought that the ideal notes were me taking the one slide of power points and producing at least 3-5 additional pages of information. This was true of attending conferences as well. I would listen to the speaker, identify verbatim what they said…. picked out key points and then continued through exploration to deepen my understanding of their lecture. That had meant that I not only listened but processed and researched to dive deeper into what the macro level of information that the professor or lecturer had initially given me. I have always retained information as well as processed details by physically writing down information. How can I unwind and relearn over 20 years of a habit? Am I going to be able to retain it?
It has always been my great satisfaction to read a book from front to back cover. I have a personality that if I start something I have a really hard time not finishing it. I will be in ultimate discomfort through the process when the reading is less than ideal but dang it I finished it. This new concept of not having to read a book from front to back cover is almost like permission that you don’t have to put yourself through that pain of hard to read books. I am so excited to learn a new way fo reading! Sign me up!
The process of learning how to re-write my thoughts from conversational to academic level has been one of the hardest things. I have always written like I was talking to you, and the move to understandably elevate that has been tough. I am so thankful that my cohort leader has been kind, and helpful through this process. He has provided great critiques to allow me to reframe ideas and get them on paper correctly. I expect to re-write a lot of my research as I learn this new process of writing. This is an area I am very excited to hone in on.
As a mom, business owner, and non-profit leader my default is to always be in a reactive state. It’s really hard for me to slow down and enhance my critical thinking skills to think beyond the problem… to process it in chunks, and allow for thorough evaluation to produce a quality portfolio.
About the Author
Alana Hayes
Alana is a mother to four beautiful children and wife to a farmer in Texas. She is an avid world traveler with a heart for both the world and education. She is the president of the nonprofit Against the Grain Texas where they focus on providing education to children overseas and at risk adults in the states. To date the nonprofit has given almost $100,000 to individuals around the world. In her free time she loves spending meaningful time with people and reading to further her personal education.3 responses to “Learning how to take bad habits and reframing into doctoral perfection!”
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Alana – Yes, you belong here! I appreciate your honesty about the challenges of a program like this. Acknowledging them is the first step to overcoming. I can’t wait to see how God works in your life over the coming two years!
It was so encouraging to me when we started this program and Jason told us about the imposter syndrome. I so often feel out of my league. I go to the Society for Pentecostal Studies Conference every year and it can be extremely intimidating. I remember thinking to myself, “I may be the runt of the litter here, but I still belong in the litter.” As Laura said, you belong here. You would not have been admitted to the program otherwise.
When it comes to note-taking, I am the same way. I am a copious note taker. Like you, I am looking forward to honing my skills, improving my writing, learning how to read intelligently, and, maybe someday, not feeling like so much of an imposter.
Alana, You are an amazing goal crushing individual! Your expectations of having to re-learn and re-write are a great example of your willingness to reach your new goal… Dr. Alana Hayes. Your willingness to embrace the discomfort or reaching for your goal is inspirational.