If you know the secret – do share! I’m trying to figure out a way to get more time out of the day…
Short of sleeping less at night and trying to pinpoint the less effective times of my day, I’m currently stuck on further strategies. As I was talking with friends the other day over a quick lunch, the brilliant thing about all this (with something of a tongue-in-cheek) is that I definitely have a lot of choice over what I might do at any given time and still be doing something that’s a ‘To Do’ on my list.
Although overwhelming, it is nice to know that this kind of extreme multi-tasking and project management will be ramping up my skills and mental discipline to a whole new level. “If I can do it now, I will be able to do it anytime hereafter.”
The key I have found, at least for me and the way I work, is to keep the balance. That is something I refuse to compromise (You can hear the sigh of relief from my sanity’s corner). Back in the day, I remember mentors telling me that when one thing (e.g. relationships) is sacrificed for the sake of another thing (e.g. career) in life, performance in the actual area you are trying to promote suffers. It’s like you are trying to balance a delectable array of drinks and nibbles on a coffee table but you shorten the leg at one corner to prop up another (don’t ask me why, the analogy doesn’t go that far). Counter-strategic, yes.
Thus, my rule is not to do it.
They do teach strategy classes here, you know…
Hilary Term (the second of our trimester system) is well underway and I can’t help but say that I am simultaneously more excited about what I’m studying than I ever have been, and also more busy than I have been for a while (and this is considering extracurriculars have always factored highly into my life!).
First, the excitement: I am jumping into my research with both feet, arms waving and – I can’t even help it - a grin on my face. When else do you get the chance to come up with a question that you are seriously curious about, given the opportunity to find a creative way to answer it, provided with guidance from an expert in the field, and given credit for doing it? Hilary Term is the semester where we finally get to embark on our research after a semester of preparatory work.
Don’t get me wrong, there are struggles and challenges involved as well (e.g. meeting conflicts that trip up your plans, too many ideas, finding access to organizations etc.), but the overarching point is that this is a question you get to answer on your terms to your standards. Every challenge you overcome gets you closer to the answer you’re looking for and maybe even insights that you hadn’t planned to get.
Hilary Term started with loads of rain and it didn’t stop until this morning. Two weeks full of clouds, rain, and wind. My first week back from winter break was also a week of firsts. My first capsizing, despite the fact I’ve been rowing for several years, and my first rowing injury that made writing my Management Research Methods assignment incredibly painful. I ended up developing inflamed tendon sheaths in both arms, so that when moving my wrists up and down it felt like there was a rubber band moving back and forth in my arm. Lovely picture, isn’t it? The good news is the pain has subsided, but the bad news is no rowing for a month. However, considering my coursework and dissertation research that must be completed this term, the latter is probably good news too.
I’m really excited about getting started with the interviews for my research project. I went to a meeting of the Oxford Students Fair Trade Coalition last night and secured seven enthusiastic interviewees for the project. I’ve decided that the best way to understand consumer perspectives of fair trade food mainstreaming is by interviewing consumers who actually know what fair trade is and buy fair trade regularly. I’m heading to a town hall meeting later this week to try and get on the agenda and plug my project. The whole meeting focuses on Oxford’s plans to become a fair trade city so I think there will be a good share of fair trade consumers there to potentially add to my interviewee pool. Until then I have physiotherapy for my arms, loads of reading to do, a couple of college dinners, and skating at the Oxford Ice Rink! Let’s hope I don’t develop any new injuries from that event. I feel this term is going to be very busy, but very rewarding. I can’t wait to put together another slide show like I did for Michaelmas term:
