Crazy or Not ?

So, I am getting ready to start a new adventure in my life… One that will probably make me cry and hate… But also learn and grow as a person. One that I’ve been dreaming since high-school: Doing my PhD.

Image from http://public.randomnotes.org/richard/PhDtalk.html   

Many of my friends or family members don’t really understand why I want to go back to school; especially for 4 years (or more)! When I tell them I just simply love to learn/study, they look at me like I’m crazy… Well, yeah! Maybe I am. Or maybe I’m a geek, or maybe… Just maybe…  I’m just like anybody else who is trying to realize a dream. For some, it’s running the marathon; for others, it’s opening a successful business; for several people, it’s finding that prince charming; and for many, it’s getting that promotion at work... For me it’s reaching the highest education level possible (hopefully they won’t invent a higher degree than a PhD)

When you decide to do something that nobody else does (less than 1% of the world population has a PhD), it is scary. There might indeed be something slightly wrong with you. There is a good reason why most people don’t take this path: it’s difficult, long and demanding… On top of that, you’re not guaranteed better salary when you’re done. You might even have less chances of getting hired (over-qualification).  So yes, it scares me a bit and I question myself sometimes: Am I up for this? Will I finish on time? Will I be able to write a strong dissertation?

I’ve been reading blogs, websites and books on how to successfully earn a PhD. I want to make sure that I make the right choices and I manage my workload properly. So I’m hunting for advice from different sources. The problem is that they don’t all give you the same advice. Each person who did a PhD took a different course; hence he had his own challenges and triumphs. So who do I listen to? Whose suggestion do I take?

After months of reading, the best advice I got is this one: “The only way to find out how to do a PhD is to do one, therefore all advice is useless”: http://public.randomnotes.org/richard/PhDtalk.html  I wish I had landed on this website months ago.

So Yes, as crazy as it may seem to some, I am embarking on that PhD journey. Besides, it’s better to regret what we have tried than regret what we have not tried.
I love research, I like reading, I enjoy learning and I’m passionate about education. So is it really crazy that I want to do a PhD?