Just need a bit of a vent today... I just completed the best part of a chapter over the last few weeks - that was a major achievement for me because I have been very unproductive lately. Anyway I met my supervisors this morning to discuss it and they have completely different ideas about how things should be done - I won't bore you all with the details - but basically what they are saying is 'start this from scratch and do it completely differently'. AARRRGGGHHHH!!!

I think I am upset because I actually thought I had done good work this time! I felt totally ambushed in the meeting and was fighting back tears the entire time :-( But I am determined not to cry in front of them - that is unthinkable!!!

Anyway I just needed to get that out of my system... think I should just go home now and start again (from scratch!) on Monday. How depressing :-(

Well that is depressing so no wonder. In future, could you go through a chapter plan with them before putting in all that work? That's what I'm about to do with my supervisor - if I can just get myself off the internet, stop procrastinaing and actually get on with it.

Don't look at it as a failure - save what you have done and hopefully you can use it in your thesis. That's what I did with a lot of papers that weren't 'good enough' for publication...

It saved a lot of time

So sorry to hear that Rosy =( that can be a horrible feeling when you think you have done some work that is pretty credible and it gets taken down...it can make you feel like you don't have a good sense of how to do the work or that all the work was in vain...

I think to some degree that comments are subjective--well, of course comments are subjective, there is nothing really objective about any of the evaluation of work, quite frankly. So on another day or with another panel you might have gotten different responses.

Following up on Smilodon's suggestion, can you put together a chapter plan that includes the comments or revisions they suggested AND those bits from your previous work that you feel should be included--and be able to state a case for WHY you want to have the chapter organised in such and such a fashion?

That said, whatever a chapter is about, its about trying to mash together huge amounts of information, and its hard to boil down complex material into a comprehensible whole. Can you ask your supervisors to explain why their chapter plan works better than yours ( without being cheeky about it) or ask them to explain in more detail where your chapter fell short...other than, do it again our way?

That is so true. I remember really straining to incorporate my sup's criticism into my MPhil discussion. Then when I wrote up the paper for a journal he said he didn't like that bit and I should take it out! Totally forgotten that he was the one who wnated it in in the first place. It's VERY subjective.

I wonder if its just a bad week going round...I HAVE been in (mild) tears more than once this week, about various things but mainly I think just the accumulation of stress and strain. I am having a nice day out tomorrow. Even my supervisor has said--TAKE A DAY OUT GET OUT OF HERE!

Yes that is a good idea - asking them if I am on the right track before I go through this whole process again! The thing is, I thought I was incorporating the things they suggested the last time! I think maybe it's not until they see it all in place that they realise it wasn't a good idea... or maybe they don't even remember the advice they gave last time around?!?!?

Thanks for the comments I think I will just try not to get down about it, and plough ahead next week! And in the meantime get very, very drunk

You and me both... Sigh.

It very well could be that they do not remember that they gave you contrary advise! In which case, you might think about whether its of any use to write up notes of your meetings and email them to the supervisors, just so that there is an agreed upon plan of action...and if they DO give contrary advise you could simply refer to the notes and say...well, my understanding from last meeting was...and point to it...and show where you have tried to incorporate that. They might be able to clarify that what sounds contrary is not...or maybe just have that memory refresher of what they have thought before..and now are giving different information.