Burned out
November 6, 2008
I’m feeling pretty burned out.
Burned out
I’m feeling pretty burned out on my class project. I think I’m in what Seth Godin called “The Dip” (Godin 2007): that trough of apathy that one falls into once the initial enthusiasm for a new project or initiative passes, when you’re no longer doing something new, and the end of the project is still not in sight. The long slog. Just have to keep going on it.
The screening exam (Jan 30, 2009) is also weighing on me. My screening exam is very similar to what other programs would call the comprehensive exam: it’s an eight hour written exam, six essay questions, which covers the material covered in the core courses taught in my school. You are graded at the level of your answer: Ph.D. level, Masters level, or Undergraduate level. I must get at least four of my six answers rated at Ph.D. level, and none at Undergraduate level. People typically study for three to five months to prepare for the exam.
I have still not re-started my studying for it. I’m not as bad off as I possibly would be if I had never yet studied for it, because I have actually done a lot of the work of studying for it already. I had planned to take the exam in September 2008, but as the date approached, non-school things began to dominate my life, and I punted until January 2009. It turned out that everyone else who had planned to take the exam in September also punted to January, so I felt better after learning that.
Regaining where I was in August by going through my study sheets for the classes I’ve already studied shouldn’t take me more than a few weeks of fairly concentrated effort, but committing to that and adding it to my CSLT 355 work and my research work is proving to be difficult for me to face up to. The harder part is studying the subjects I didn’t get to by the time I stopped, because that means I need to make new study sheets.
It’s one of those things that I know I would feel much better about if I just did anything, so I need to just go start it.
References
- Godin, S. (2007). The Dip: A Little Book That Teaches You When to Quit (and When to Stick). Portfolio Hardcover.
