How to get through your PhD without going insane! Eye opening truths

Here are the eye-opening truths about how to get through your Ph.D. without going insane! A Ph.D. is a super turbulent time and the outcomes will only be as good as your mental health is! Here are my top tips for staying sane:
0:00 Introduction
0:27 Why this is important
2:18 Focus on one task at a time
4:14 Set aside time for deep work
5:57 Avoid the politics as best you can
8:09 Create a manageable routine - this is a marathon, not a sprint!
9:55 Learn to cope with rejections - 2 awsome approaches
13:35 Create balance with non-academic activities and friends
Let me know what you would add to this list:

[@foodiemin]

I am currently going through that 'I-just-don't-care-damn-this-whole-thing' phase for a month now. this helps! Thank you!

[@michaelsun7968]

These videos are definitely helping me stay sane during my thesis writing lol

[@blancavega5109]

Hi, I just found your channel, almost at the very end of my PhD and I wish I had before. Very good advice, since now I am trying to wrap up results and finish, and I feel an incredible ammount of frustration every time an experiment does not work and I have to rethink the whole strategy again. I hate it every single time it happens and I feel incredibly miserable.

[@CesarrrScreamer]

i love your videos, so good to hear other phds talking about the struggle and helping each other through it.

[@benwarnes3177]

Thanks for the video Andy! I sometimes struggle to see the most important task that needs to be done and I will take you advice. I also enjoyed your point about balance. Thankfully, my supervisor is exceptional and I think the balance of having a day a week to focus on other things will be integral to a successful PhD in Chemistry.

[@DrAndyStapleton]

So pleased it helped you, Ben! Balance is so important!

[@tapashyarasaily1373]

This channel keeps it so real👍👍

[@StyleGoalsHarmony_]

Thank you so much for this video, I had a tough time these past few weeks.

[@DrAndyStapleton]

Sorry you're going through a tough time. But I hope that it'll get better for you soon. I'm pleased that the video helped.

[@lovelyxtyxty8261]

Thank you very much for this insightful video. It really lift my spirit up. I've been having a tough time with both my supervisors because I feel they are both confusing me and competing with each other. I feel that I am not their dream student because I was expected to know and do everything at once. I've not been enjoying having a meeting with them because nothing I do is good enough and I was so demotivated in our last meeting. This will help me go through this week.

[@prettyproblem16]

great advice, thank you so much Andy

[@DrAndyStapleton]

Glad it was helpful!

[@wahikorea7379]

Thank you very much Andy 🌹

[@DrAndyStapleton]

A pleasure!

[@carlalmejiasrivera8214]

A huge thanks for this video and this channel. Listening to your experiences have helped me so much. THANKS, THANKS, THANKS!

[@Yaqeen_ehsan]

Love this! Keep it up! Your videos really help us out a lot as PhD students! So much motivation in them 🙏🏻

[@DrAndyStapleton]

Glad you like them!

[@PhDCoffeeTime]

The timer method is called Pomodoro timer! I actually hated it because I don't like to be stopped at an exact time point of work, and as an introvert, the alarm was like a punishment more than a "reward". Personally, I enjoy a simple timer Toggl, it's free and just a timer button. It's been helpful for the last 4 years, and I swear every time when I write the first 10 min I get impatient. But thanks to the timer, I realize I could push a little more to finish my daily 30 min goal. I had a review paper done after two years of spending an extra 30 min in the morning to write. Big congrats for 1K sub! The PhD community needs to hang out more on KZbin!

[@DrAndyStapleton]

Thanks for the addition and the timer suggestion! Happy to share what I have learned during my time in Academia! Yes, hanging out more is important to get through the tough times!

[@jray1184]

great video --- especially the reminder about not getting involved in the politics! so true

[@DrAndyStapleton]

Thank you, M Ray! So very important!

[@silverhetch3383]

soooo glad I found this channek, gems in every video :D

[@wilsonzhang9766]

Thank you so much for your video, Andy !!! It is really helpful and practical, I always feel there are so many things in my work list which makes my work and study very confused and tired! I need to focus on the most important thing!

[@DrAndyStapleton]

Glad it was helpful!

[@dr.bangura4722]

Your guides are useful- I am in the centre of it (the PhD marathon) to overcome it.

[@DrAndyStapleton]

Good luck!

[@physicswithana]

Hey Andy, thanks for the video, it was super useful. I specially liked the coping mechanisms to dealing with failure, definitely helps with the imposter syndrome and it is not talked enough in academia. Video idea: how to find a good supervisor/department to do your PhD in? I am still a MSc student and I worry about the transition from masters to phd. Keep up the great work :)

[@DrAndyStapleton]

Thank you! I'll add that video to my list! good luck with the MSc!

[@saragomez1801]

Thank you so much for showing what PhD students go through. I am in my last months of the journey, finshing the writing of the thesis and my first ever paper. I have had, and still have, a lot of anxiety related problems. Any help for future students is good!

[@DrAndyStapleton]

My pleasure, Sara! Good luck with the final stages and stay strong!

[@ebrensi]

I went insane. Looking back on it i can say that. I barely crawled out of my maths PhD program with a M.S.

[@Xfilma]

So useful, thanks for sharing. One year in as an international doc student AND new mom and I had two days off. One day for myself? I don’t even remember how this may look like 😔

[@DrAndyStapleton]

That is a really tough combo! I hope you have the right support networks around you!

[@pseudomugilidae5897]

As a researcher who has ADHD, Pomodoro method is very useful!

[@digitydog1234]

Be aware that universities offer lots of time wasters. You have to remain focussed on your thesis - as this document is important to only one person - YOU!

[@sitinorbayamohdkonar7071]

Wish me a goodluck for my PhD journey 🍀

[@akscience9690]

Hello Andy. What are your thoughts on doing a PhD with your partner or while having a family? What are the prons and cons of it as an experience. Thank you.

[@adelal-jahdamy6136]

Thank you for these valuable tips and I would like to ask about how it can be overcome the sentiments of the inability of achieving PhD since the English language is not strong? I mean, I just spend one year learning the language, so is possible for me to attain a Ph.D.?

[@DrAndyStapleton]

I have seen a number of students learning English before starting their PhD and then complete it within three years. If you are willing to continue to learn and improve them there is no reason you cannot succeed!

[@acid5-nitroizoftalic987]

What do you think is the best way one could not get involved in the politics of they are forced upon by the supervisor?

[@gracez2723]

“That is rubbish.” So savage

[@kathrinpaal7005]

Are you on Instagram? I would like to share the video there because it's very helpful.

[@amvu2]

Great video. I also read Deep Work. However, I agree on the observations of Laura Vanderkam that the book comes from a male view of someone who does not have a lot of housework/family commitments. What are your views/suggestions regarding having a family/managing family life while doing a PhD?

[@HenrJensen]

Iisten carefully as a sheep barks in the distance

[@richardthegingerbo909]

nah, that was a West Midlands barking spider

[@sanjanasebastian8023]

Were you always so mindful or did experiences teach you to be mindful in order to organise your life better? I am curious 😜

[@DrAndyStapleton]

I certainly have taken the time to educate myself and learn from my experiences. Having a good read of stoic texts have helped a lot!

[@aditisiddharth6472]

how many papers did you publish during your phd?

[@DrAndyStapleton]

3 papers were published as the result of my PhD. Not much in today's standards but typical for the time.