"Help! I can't stay focused on my PhD work!"

For other quick tips check out my blog: jameshaytonphd.com/blog
For more detailed guidance, courses, weekly zoom calls and more, check out the PhD academy: www.phd.academy
Cold Turkey Website blocker: getcoldturkey.com/ (I have no affiliation with them - I recommend the software because I use it daily and it's a lifesaver!)

[@zj4925]

When you are a PhD Student and at the same time the mother of two little kids, that's exactly What you need, "Short Term Planning". Thanks for your useful tips.

[@SaleFamineVFF]

Hey, thanks. Just wanted to say that despite some people criticizing the obviousness of some tips, you do well to remind them to us, Phd students. Ockham's razor: the truth is usually what lies in the most obvious! I should finish my PhD in three months but I hate my topic and because so many bad things have happened in the meantime it's very hard to see it positively. Your videos do help tho. I'll try going for a walk instead of guilt-tripping me to work more. You look like you are in a good place in life. I'm happy for you

[@VitaHayet]

Thank you. You always give us new inspiration

[@ZGwoo888]

Thanks so much for your videos James! They always come at the right time 😊

[@nasiry2460]

Thank you, James.

[@kyts-empoweringyou7297]

Thanks for the video James!!!

[@PoojaYadav-yf2ui]

So relatable. Great tips sir. Thanks.

[@mahitabsk999]

Thank you so much this is supportive and motivating, I feel I'm not alone

[@SteveAlesSidfuhao]

Thanks James. Fantastic!

[@bentaakinyi2248]

Thanks so much Dr James for sharing on focus.The point of staying with the problem little bit longer is powerful!!

[@aneedfortheory]

Hi James. This short video really spoke to my frustrations as a struggling postdoc. Thank you for presenting these workaround tools and the discussion of plausible roadblocks in this manner, it should help in the forthcoming weeks and months.

[@berenicebarker7823]

Thrilled I found you ! just what I needed to hear as super stuck in MPhil territory and this was/is genius. Thank you !

[@MindMysteryMastery]

Thank you for this. The content, and the way you shared it was meaningful for me.

[@nitrofl]

Thanks for your tips, James. I am a master's student, and I frequently found myself very distracted, and after, I got frustrated for not have the work done. I can't wait to put your tips on practicing. =)

[@kimberleymigallos2964]

I feel seen! Haha! Thank you so much Dr. Hayton! I am doing my dissertation and I am finding it hard to focus on the difficult and creative tasks in the writing process. I get easily distracted with checking emails and social media. Especially now that we are still in quarantine. Looking forward to more videos!

[@maheralaji3585]

Thanks brother You re giving tips not just for phd or masters but you can apply those tops towards any goal in life 🙏👍

[@iz3288]

Just what I needed, thank you!!

[@olwenanderson2777]

Some good practical advice here...thank you!

[@ashvarma1]

Thanks very much indeed. You are not only helping your audience to excel and succeed in their endeavors, you are also helping them tremendously by sharing your personal life events when you were in the valleys. Most people only share their life events when they were on top of the mountain. You give an immense sense to the audience that they are not alone when in the valleys-very therapeutic, very helpful and very inspiring. Also, love your recommendation of Sam Harris app. He is one of my heroes. Thanks again. Ashok Varma M.D. San Francisco, California.

[@petrayang3635]

thanks so much! these suggestions are really helpful.

[@zeinabosman303]

Thank you very much for you tips. I wish I knew your channel earlier.

[@akan1]

Thank you. Thank you....thank you.

[@diptijadhav4985]

Thank you so much. Video is really helpful to me.

[@muffinberg7960]

For anxiety when trying to start work I would recommend grayscaling where you are looking at. Using the apss like f.lux does the trick. I have heard that when we are anxious our primal optical senses become really sensitive. Closing the colors down when I am anxious really seems to do the trick for me. I havent been using this for a long time so I can not guarantee that this is not placebo. However, It was unbelievable for me. My blood pressure would drop instantly. Just a tip. I hope it will come useful.

[@James_Hayton]

Interesting tip, haven’t heard that one before!

[@amandac3362]

thank you --needed this

[@ninirema4532]

Dear prof Dr sir Very great this lecture Thank you very 🙏 much

[@ladyashephd727]

James, I have notepads in various places in the house to jot down ideals that keep me motivated to finish an area of research to expand upon in my dissertation.

[@tedtonz5734]

thank you very much!

[@alilajuly9848]

Distraction issues brought me here. Thanks for the tips, I am gonna try and be a focused writer :D

[@yheuken4766]

So useful, thank you

[@shakespearaamina9117]

Thank you

[@msdaldal7585]

Thank you 😭

[@emi62507]

That website blocker is a game changer. I would give myself breaks on youtube which end up being hours of youtube and minutes of writing. Thank you. Edit: and the mental help tip is very helpful.

[@EdwanMusic]

Great advice, as I'm currently trying to finish my PhD thesis. Binge-watching your videos, thank you for this great and inspiring content!

[@emulus4000]

So you're distracted by his videos????

[@EdwanMusic]

@@emulus4000 I got distracted and it then gave me more focus, so that distraction was 💯% worth it! Are you too ?

[@dinarslan3787]

i loved it

[@maramezina1094]

Thank you so much for this useful video. We need more videos on how to improve our writing skills. should we read first then write, or read and write at the same time?

[@sandiswaleratokobe5973]

I am drowning and I just want to give up. At this point, I deleted every social media but I do not seem to be able to finish. I have a full Draft and now I am told its too long, I need to delete things.

[@teggplant1539]

I've also found separate Chrome profiles helpful to avoid procrastination.

[@ErnestoRParedes]

Hola, me gustó mucho tu video. Tengo 24 años y estoy persiguiendo un doctorado en economía. Me ha costado mucho concentrarme y procuraré seguir tus consejos. Saludos desde Nicaragua.

[@theverasilva]

Hi James! Thank you so so much for your content and amazing advice. I just have a small comment to make, I 100% like to support content creators on KZbin and love being able to help just by watching ads, but personally, the amount of ads in your videos are very disruptive. For example, most times I watch this type of content, I’m just listening while I do something else in the house. This means I lose track of what you’re saying because I’m not by my iPad in order to skip the ad. It makes me not even want to keep watching. I hope you take this as critical criticism because I really believe you’re great and not having ads during the video will help you grow more. Once again, great great work!

[@James_Hayton]

I have an idea to put the same videos on my own website ad-free. The KZbin revenues help support the video production, but I get that they can be annoying!

[@RK-df1fm]

I wish I have found your channel sooner. I am about to defend my thesis now.

[@James_Hayton]

Good luck!

[@sreelusree]

Thanku fr this video at the right time..I don't know how can I complete my thesis wthn the five months..stress ...stress ..stress...

[@pranjalipriya2516]

Incredible you are!!!! Enrolled myself in PhD last year, came accross to your videos few days back!!! I must say, you are out of world The tips, the suggestions you share it's really helpful for the PhD aspirants like us!! I watched your first video "phd tips and basic principles" then got hooked up and ended up watching the whole playlist!!! Its awe inspiring amd motivating!! The journey you share, the suggestions you give, it's so genuine! I highly recommend every PhD aspirants to watch his videos and follow his regime, if not all, at least some! I have already shared your videos with many of my colleagues!! Keep this videos coming! It motivate and inspire us a lot!!! Stay safe and take care! Loads of love and respect to u❤️

[@sashanealand8315]

thanks! i have this problem every single day in the lab many times im not even sure what i need to do because a lot of things are not working instead of finidshing an experiment that is going badly i start a new one because its easier, now ive got a whole bunch of beginnings of experiments with no results

[@user-rw8cw5hp5n]

There are days when I struggle to write a single sentence. I am a full-time PhD student and halfway through my PhD, I have always had problems organising things and tend to leave things to the last minute. I am actually panicking that I may not be able to complete my PhD on time, as I enter this phase of cognitive stagnancy and procrastination. I wonder if anyone else resonates with this?

[@sarahpotts3253]

Just found your videos and am using them to help me re-focus on my PhD after a summer spent up mountains and in reservoirs! An off target question...I'm just about to move house and sort out a new office. Can I ask is that sound-proofing on your office walls?

[@James_Hayton]

There's a little bit of acoustic paneling to dampen echos, but it's not soundproofed. The mic is pretty good and I do noise reduction in post, but sometimes you can hear motorbikes or sirens from the road outside

[@sarahpotts3253]

@@James_Hayton great, thanks for the info!

[@pauliina5565]

Thank you so much for these really helpful videos! Your point about breaks is a really good one - but how often do you take these 15min walk breaks? I often try to do 50min work followed by 10min break (kind of like extended pomodoro), especially when I'm doing something difficult and taxing (which seems to be nearly everything I do). I do recognise that I mostly spend those 10min breaks just checking emails or using my phone, but I'm not sure if going on a walk every hour is a bit excessive. How do you take a break in between those 45min-1.5h work segments you mentioned?

[@James_Hayton]

Try to get away from email or your phone during those breaks! Give yourself a real break and a chance to think or relax. I'd tend to go for a walk if I need to think about a difficult problem- it's not so regular as every hour.

[@rawr4230]

I'm having difficulty in resuming writing. I suspended my studies for 5 months, and it's my final year. I want to write, I just don't know where to begin, or how to feel passionate about writing.

[@James_Hayton]

Start be re-reading what you've already got!

[@anjalyb6935]

Thank you so much for your videos. It's help me keep in track my PhD journey. Currently I'm suffering from the academic ego between my supervisor and HOD. My fellowship is stopped since 1.4 years. Because ego issues between HOD. I'm a 5th year PhD student. I submitted my first draft of my thesis. I don't know how to solve this issue.

[@James_Hayton]

That's a tough situation... It's always difficult to advise on interpersonal or political problems like this. Did you submit that draft 1.4 years ago and still waiting for feedback?

[@anjalyb6935]

@@James_Hayton Thanks for your reply, sir. No, I submit on Dec. 2020. actually, the meeting has to be conducted in March 2020. due to lockdown, it got postponed. The HOD was not allowed to conduct the meeting online. I came back and submitted my first draft for correction in December. Before lockdown, I was running behind this. Now also he is not willing to conduct the meeting. My work is fine and I'm having some good publication also. But I don't know how to get a sign from him.

[@Attari586]

@@anjalyb6935 very tough situation God bless you

[@anjalyb6935]

@@Attari586 I submitted. Thank you so much.

[@meghap4792]

❤❤❤

[@mariskad8405]

I am at the stage of being scared applying for any PhD application because of full self-doubt and have only a satisfactory GPA :/

[@James_Hayton]

If your GPA isn't great, you'll need something else to compete with other applicants. Check out this blog post for some tips: jameshaytonphd.com/quick-tips/how-to-get-into-a-phd-programme

[@mariskad8405]

@@James_Hayton Thank you so much. I really appreciate your help.

[@sunnyyoda5511]

How can I give all your videos 5 thumbs up?

[@James_Hayton]

Send it to 5 friends! :D

[@XinhLe]

Eating less sugar helps me to stay focused.

[@KSASA999]

50 min study and 10 min quick checking our stupid things.

[@aigul9585]

Hello. Are you married?

[@James_Hayton]

Not yet!

[@adenikeallen5354]

@@James_Hayton :)

[@maramezina1094]

The same question I have, he deserves all the best coz he is helpful.

[@muhammadashfaq2422]

I am so sorry to waste my precious time in listening to your naive things. These are so basic things that everyone knows and somewhat tries to control. Just to keep your channel going you hook candidates with attractive topics which i guess you know nothing of. I dont undersatnd why a people aftdr doing their phdd strat giving lectures on everything. Please stick to the topic which you sepnd years in research. Thanks

[@James_Hayton]

haha, ok :)

[@muhammadashfaq2422]

@@James_Hayton Trust me most of these youtube channels run by successful and unsuccessful phds really waste students precious time in listening to these wasteful things. Thanks

[@James_Hayton]

Well I hope you find something more useful to you. Have a nice day :)

[@jaminyitan3274]

I think, Sharing a knowledge is not a bad idea even people knows everything. Sometime it helps to other. Keep it up 👍.

[@nasiry2460]

Thank you, James.