Humble Origins

thesis threads began during my transition from undergraduate to graduate work. As a first generation college student, I felt compelled to search for a guidebook and because I could not find one that fit my needs, I started to collect notes from paving my own path. These posts are those notes. I started from blank pages and my Moleskin notebook started to rapidly fill. The pages spilled over with ideas from professional development workshops, library workshops, colloquium talks, and more. I had informational meetings with individuals whose career paths I wanted to follow. I wrote down every word my advisor said. I asked questions and every time I received an answer, I wrote it down. I consulted with academic counselors on devising plans to structure my time to handle a graduate student reading load. I met and brainstormed regularly with a writing consultant. When my department hired a professional career consultant, my Moleskin was ever present jotting down our brainstorming sessions. The notebooks started to pile up and the idea behind thesis threads was born.

thesis

[noun]
The thesis is the culminating artifact of my graduate career and I needed to create a path to get there.

threads

[noun]
The collection of pages from my notebooks that can be linked together with similar themes and subjects used to create my own personal guidebook in the form of a blog.

I created five different categories to organize my notes:

1. Academics: All and any academic related topics from being a student in classes and teaching my own class, to note taking and studying strategies, strategic reading, and relevant workshop notes.
2. Thesis: The focal point of thesis threads, I will take you through the process from research question to literature review to the design of the methodology to defense, having experienced the traditional format since I was an undergraduate student, culminating in a 100 page honors thesis.
3. Productivity: How to be productive in life with and without technology, including tips and strategies like the Pomodoro technique and bullet journaling to collaborative work such as writing groups.
4. Professional Development: How to develop yourself professionally while you are a student so you land that first job when you are on the market.
5. Lifestyle: There is life outside academia and here the focus is on wellbeing, creativity, and joyful living.

Well, this sums up my humble beginnings. Please feel free to suggest feedback on the structure of organizing my notes or threads in the comments below!

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