Essential Advice For Writing A PhD Thesis On Knowledge Management
Whether this is your first or fifth thesis, writing one can often seem like a daunting task and the process can be made even more difficult when indecision and procrastination set in. I always tell my students that the actual topic doesn’t matter. So, okay on this occasion you have been tasked with doing your PhD on knowledge management. It could just have easily been organizational behavior. The topic doesn’t matter as much as your attitude towards doing it.
Far too many students end up suffering from rabbit in headlight syndrome. Even though they know it is coming, they just freeze at the very mention of the word “thesis.” So, rather than tackle it in a logical, orderly manner they end up getting caught up in the very fact that they have their assignment to hand in.
If you want to avoid falling into that trap simply follow my essential advice:
Make sure your argument is watertight
Before you type a single word into your document you need to take some time out to make sure that you:
- Fully understand the argument that you are making
- That you can articulate your viewpoint clearly
If you cannot do the above two things then you are going to seriously struggle to make anyone else understand you.
Lose the waffle
A statement is usually relatively brief and should be:
- Clear
- Concise
- To the point
Don’t try to mask your argument with fancy words. Cut to the chase and present it in a logical manner than leaves no room for ambiguity.
Ignore what everyone else is doing
Okay, let’s clear something up. This is YOUR thesis. It is not your best friend’s, or the nerd’s that everyone loves to hate. If there are thirty of you in class, then your teacher can expect to receive thirty unique thesis statements. Don’t worry about what anyone else is saying or doing. You just concentrate on coming up with the best thesis that you possibly can and let everyone else worry about their own. The less time you spend worrying about what your best friend is doing, the more time you will have to polish yours.
Take your time
You should think of yourself as a master craftsman honing their craft. Da Vinci didn’t knock up The Mona Lisa overnight. You should apply the same principle when preparing your thesis.