When I think of goal setting, it is something that I have always done and will continue to do. Last year I set a goal to lose 20 lbs. In just under four months I was able to lose 20 lbs which is roughly five pounds per month or one and one-quarter pounds per week. The first goal was to reduce my diet by 500 calories per day. This was done by setting a goal of not eating breakfast and making my first meal at noon each day. My second goal was to burn 500 calories per day in the gym by doing high-intensity workouts. By sticking to my milestones and diet, I was able to lose 20 lbs. Unfortunately, I have found those 20 lbs again by eating breakfast every day and not working out for an entire year.
When it comes to goals for my doctoral journey, it is a little different. It is more like running a marathon. As I look at the route for my doctoral marathon it is a 2 year event. Much like a marathon, I must set milestones along the way to show progress and completion. This is a 2-year degree which is a total of 104 weeks. We are currently in week 6 which means 98 more weeks to go. Each week there is reading material and an assignment. To stay focused and on tasks, I set daily reminders on my calendar to keep me on track. I have to dismiss the reminder after completing the task or I will be reminded again throughout the day.
On Mondays, I log in and review the material for the week. Based on the amount of reading material I determine if I am going to read it all in one day or in two days. If the reading is one or two chapters, I will complete that on Monday. If the reading is from multiple sources I will schedule to complete the readings on Monday and Tuesday. If there are discussion posts, I like to complete those on Wednesdays. This gives other students a chance to read and respond to the post. It also gives me time to respond back to those students. On Thursdays, I will read and respond to other students’ discussion posts. On Fridays and Sundays, I typically relax and on Saturday mornings I will complete any remaining assignments. This works very well with my hectic work schedule and provides time for me to spend with my family. It also gives me a rhythm to follow week after week and helps to not focus on the remaining 98 weeks to go.
These weekly goals work very well for me. Unfortunately, when working on a degree online it feels like I am on an island alone. I wake up, do my morning routine, check my emails from work, see if I have any meetings and if not I start working on my doctorate. Very few people know that I am working on a doctorate as my support system is very small. I have accomplished many great things in life already and some people feel that I don’t need anyone’s support. They are partially correct. A lack of support is all the drive I need to reach my goals. Just because I know there are people who don’t want me to succeed, forces me to want to succeed.
I do have an excellent yet very small support system. My girlfriend knows that I need extreme quiet when I am reading and completing assignments. She does her best to keep the home quiet and I compromise by trying to complete my assignments when our daughter is at school or camp. Providing me with quiet time is all the support I need from her at this time. My mother is a huge support. She texts me every morning to encourage me to stay the course and complete this doctorate. She also mentioned to Dr. Harvey at my old Church that I was working on my doctorate. Dr. Harvey sends encouragement through my mother to keep going until I am done. Dr. Bobbie works with me at Kennesaw State University. He always asks for an update on my doctorate when he sees me on campus. Dr. Bentham is a close friend of mine who started her doctorate in 2013 when we worked together. I was her encouragement all the way to the finish line. She is there for me as well. There are a few others, but those mentioned have been there for me since I first mentioned earning a doctorate degree. These are my personal and professional accountability partners.
I am going to reach out to more doctoral faculty at Kennesaw State University and see if someone is willing to mentor me. The goal of mentorship would be to have an accountability partner that can keep me accountable in this program but also show me what I will be doing once my degree is complete. It seems like a long time, however, I watched a co-worker complete this program and it seemed to go by so quickly. I also have another co-worker who started this program last year and has a year to go. Soon I will be crossing the stage with my doctorate degree and I want to be able to hit the ground running.
