Paul: ‘If you start in the morning, the first chance you can, it will be so much easier to come back to.’
Procrastinating Paul: ‘I don’t know, maybe just a really quick break and I’ll feel more energised.’
Perceptive Paul: ‘You’ll feel better once you start putting some words down.’
Procrastinating Paul: ‘Yes, but do I need to push myself? Besides, perhaps I should just check my emails?’
Perceptive Paul: ‘The emails will be there after you do some writing.’
Procrastinating Paul: ‘I’m not sure I am in the mood.’
Perceptive Paul: ‘Your mood will probably change within a few minutes of sitting down to write.’
To an extent the Perceptive Paul won the debate and I did start writing, although the tension did rumble on a bit. Perhaps unwisely, I checked my emails just after I had started writing. If these had been more urgent, I may have been derailed early on.
Exercise
Fill in your own inner dialogue
Procrastinating part of me:
Perceptive part of me:
Procrastinating part of me:
Perceptive part of me:
Procrastinating part of me:
Perceptive part of me:
Where do I start?
It’s all very well feeling that we should start our essay, but where – and how? Do we start at the beginning and push through to the conclusion, or perhaps start reading first, or writing a plan – or should we stop until everything seems a little bit clearer? The best idea is to start doing whatever it is we can do without any delay – for example, without having to find notes and references, or read and understand an idea and …, we will do that once we have started. If we delay at the start, we might never start.
It may be useful to think this through with some examples. Below, two essay titles are given, followed by an initial outline of ideas using both speech bubbles and notes, and including an identification of gaps in knowledge. Each of these examples imagines a different sort of gap in knowledge on the part of the student having a first thought about their essay. Note how, despite these gaps, something can be usefully started and the gaps can be better specified as a result.
Example one
Essay title:
‘Critically evaluated Piaget’s stage theory of cognitive development.’
How you feel about the essay
Roughly aware of Piaget’s ideas, but cannot recall the studies in any detail. Aware of certain criticisms regarding Piaget’s ideas and some sense of the contrasting approaches, but cannot recall the names and specifics of the ideas.
How you can get started
You have quite a lot of understanding that can inform the shape that your essay might take. You need to clarify a fair amount of detail. Although you could turn to your notes, textbooks and other sources to fill out these details, it is probably best to write first without delay and then you will be less likely to be distracted and more likely to undertake really focused, purposive reading.
What your start might look like
1 Using images
Piaget:
Critic one:
Critic two:
2. Note formPiaget ran experiments about children’s cognitive development.Piaget emphasised stage-related progress.Some people criticised the way that Piaget conducted his experiments – something about the wording and the difficulty.Some people had a different cognitive approach – something about a more gradual development.What I need to find out and where:What Piaget’s experiments were called and what they involved (I have some lecture notes on this).What his evidence looked like (the textbook covers this).Who raised what specific objections concerning the wording and difficulty of his tasks – and what was their evidence (the textbook covers this).Who suggested that instead of stages children developed more gradually – and what was their evidence (the lecture notes give names and the textbook provides more detail on this).
Note: Identifying where you can find the information is super-important. Without this you will stop because you do not have the information you need to continue, or you will look perhaps half-heartedly for sources – secretly pleased that you have an excuse to stop thinking so hard about your essay. Alternatively, you might quickly check the web, just in case, and then… ‘50 things to do with a water melon – I’ll just check that first’.
Example two
Essay title:
‘Outline and evaluate the deindividuation account of why people engage in acts of aggression.’
How you feel about the essay
Aware of some ideas about aggression, but not clear on what the ‘deindividuation account’ is. There was something about groups and aggression and something else about how we define what aggression is and how it can be debated.
How you can get started
1 Using images
Deindividuation
Group approach
Definition of aggression
2. Note formThe deindividuation
