The One Goal Thread
Hello all
Had good news this morning - the organisation I approached to ask if they would host / take part in my main research study has come back and said yes in principle. Yay! Big relief - I was worried everywhere would say no outright. But now I feel like my cat looked the first time he ever caught a bird - frozen with terror at what I've done and not knowing what to do next! It's silly really, I'm scared that I'll say something stupid to them and they'll change their minds!
(Anyone got any advice? What's the usual next step - send them a project brief? Arrange to meet them? Tell them I'll be in touch in a few weeks? What do you think?)
So, goals for this afternoon:
1.) Reply to organisation's email with a suggestion for next steps (gulp!)
2.) Finish editing PowerPoint for presentation I'm giving on Friday
3.) Prepare plan of action to discuss with supervisors tomorrow morning
I'd prepare a project brief (in case they ask for one) - make this no more than 1 page of A4, they won't read it otherwise and will lose interest in the research. Arrange to meet them. The scary thing to remember is that for you this is a big meeting and very important for you, for them its a very small thing during the day - I found it hard to remember that when doing my research and then got frustrated when people didn't drop everything for me. The key thing they will be interested in is a) impact on them - what can you transfer from the research, what are the PRACTICAL benefits, b) how will the info be used, I had to sign an agreement about how I'd describe the org in any publications (not allowed to name it), and how data would be treated e.g. kept locked up, password protected etc.
You want from this meeting a) a key point of contact, to go to with any questions. This is likely to be someone junior as senior people will just ignore the emails. b) set up a date for the first part of the research - even if its only tentative.
Thanks Sneaks, that's really helpful. They've asked me what my proposed timetable is and said they want to be able to use my results, so it's all looking good! I'll prepare a project brief in case (I think that'll be helpful anyway - just to make myself think about it from their point of view). I think I'm going to ask them whether they'd like to meet at this stage or keep it to emails until a little closer to the start of the research itself.
I really would meet them, even if its only for an informal coffee, otherwise you're just another name and they'll forget about the project, other things will come up etc etc. Also think about how much you're willing to compromise your research e.g. I had a woman who wanted to put a load of questions into my questionnaire which made it about 8 pages long! I had to compromise to get the best of both worlds i.e. she sent it around all her contacts, so I still got all the info, but with a little added, and then I had to produce a report for her.
Really good meeting with my supervisors this morning, lots of helpful advice and suggestions and offers of useful papers and books. And support to attend a conference abroad (hopefully presenting) and to write a journal article for a special issue covering my subject area. Feeling supremely confident about it all, which makes a change!
Hopefully this won't all come crashing down around me....
Goals for the rest of the day:
1.) Write up notes from supervision meeting
2.) Email conference organisers and journal editors
3.) Go to library for books on survey methods
4.) Take re-registration form into Graduate Office
5.) Leave early to get home and do non-PhD work this evening
I submitted one of my PhD papers to the biggest journal in my field today. I very very much doubt it will get in, I'll probably have an email tomorrow saying "don't you dare send us anything again". But its worth a shot, and I might get some good comments off it.
Goal 2: put this presentation together.
