You can change the world in just 15 minutes a day

So says my friend and coach (who lives in Phoenix where it was 85 yesterday, so of course she would be full of optimism). Actually, she didn't say I could change the world. What she said was, I could write a book. In just 15 minutes a day. But I think you could probably insert any huge, overwhelming project in that sentence, and make progress toward its completion in just 15 minutes a day.

Except maybe the literature review for my dissertation. (Am I whining again? I have to be careful of slipping into “I'm so special” mode, you know what I mean: I'm so special that the Universe has singled me out as the one exception, the one person on the face of the planet, out of almost 7 billion people, that the 15-minute a day suggestion won't work for.)

Fifteen minutes a day feels impossible when it comes to writing a literature review, because it takes a lot longer than 15 minutes to read what I've written and remember what I was trying to say. (We are talking 40-80 pages, after all, a veritable tome, a massive testament to my intellect, which if I ever do actually finish I predict no one will actually read.) I think my writing strategy needs some work. Tiny bites. Baby steps. That's what they say. Fifteen minutes a day.

So, here I am, I've got time, and what am I doing? I just spent 45 minutes clearing out my email inbox. That was productive. Not. Now I'm working on this blog. Super fun and totally useless as far as moving me toward finishing my literature review. I'm distracted by everything: my cat, the sunshine, my headache... how does one focus in the face of all these obstacles? I want to eat a gallon of ice cream. I want to spend money. I want to take a nap. Oh, wait, I already did that. Darn it!

I joined a LinkedIn dissertation discussion group, so I receive daily emails from ABDs just like me, whining about getting started, pleading for support from the group. (Do I offer any support? No, I'm an introvert and a chronic malcontent, remember? I just lurk and smirk.) Reading their posts allows me to feel superior. And maybe it motivates me a tiny bit to prove I'm not like them. We'll see.

Another motivation: The university just shuffled me into the next dissertation course. Even though I don't know if my concept has been approved, I'm now enrolled in DIS 2. Lucky me, apparently my performance in DIS 1 was satisfactory, and now I've been awarded the right to spend another $2,380 for three more months of torture. Oh joy. The next course doesn't actually start until April 30, so I have some time to do some laundry, maybe vacuum the hairballs off the rugs. And work on my literature review. All I need is 15 minutes a day.