#40 When is a paper final?

Writing a paper is like creating art. The artist chooses when to stop with the work of art.

But the artist can also get trapped inside their mind.

“Do I have the right results? Maybe I should try to get better ones. I have not done enough.”

These questions run in our minds as we stare at the screen, wanting to do something meaningful. And we find an activity to do for half an hour, to feel better.

Now we have a solution: we need to do one more measurement, one more simulation, one more iteration.

We might wander, go left and right, and get more data – which is not always better. The constant search for more can be paralyzing but seems like a good idea.

One way is to share it with someone outside of ourselves: ideally our supervisor. This person has a different view of things and can help in making the next step.

Next step can be making a paper skeleton, instead of making a perfect paper skeleton. It can be inserting the images and writing the caption of the image, instead of making a perfect image and caption. It also can be discussing with your supervisor along the way, instead of waiting to have the perfect paper and only then presenting it.

The paper will be final after a series of small steps and iterations. Even though we might want to make one big giant leap of a step and finish the paper in one afternoon.

What is the next small step for you? 👣

#phd #phdjourney #phdlife #beyondphd -----------------------------------------------

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