The PERFECT PhD daily schedule and clever habits!

In this video I talk about the perfect PhD daily schedule and the simple habits that you can use to make your day more productive and make sure you are working towards your ultimate goal – getting a PhD!

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▼ ▽ TIMESTAMPS
0:00– Introduction
0:54 –The importance of a daily schedule
2:15 – In the morning before going into work
6:14 – When you get in
10:39 – Lunch
11:48 – The afternoon
14:53 – Final tips for success
18:29 – Summary

📷 My Gear 📷

[DrAndyStapleton]

Join a friendly community that will answer all of your PhD questions!

[BlondeQtie]

My biggest tips:
- I have a second laptop at the lab JUST FOR MY PHD. I have nothing on it but work related stuff. No games, no social media, no nothing.
- I have a cheap smart watch with a timer function. Whenever I need to set a timer for an experiment, I use that, so I don’t have to reach for my smartphone and end up you social media xD The smartwatch has no social media or notifications. I also love the vibration function as an alarm.

[kaustubhthapa]

My usual day for the last two years of PhD (when I was not doing fieldwork). For the first two years, I didn't have a regular routine. I started waking up around 5:30/6:00 without an alarm, which helped a lot.

6:00-7:30 - wake up/ stretchy-yoga/ meditate (I don't prefer apps - I have done a few Vipassana courses)/tend to garden if necessary/cup of coffee
7:30-8:00 - bike to the office
8:00 - 4:00 - hopefully, two hours of focused work before lunch, homemade lunch if possible, walk in the garden during/after lunch with or without friends. Catch up with emails, keep up with other tasks/meetings
4:00 -5:30 - bike back home, do groceries when needed
5:30 - 6:00 - 5k run (best part of the day)
6:00 - 10:00 - cook, eat, clean, read/see friends
10:30 bed

And repeat!! :)

Apart from working from home, I almost never worked at home and only occasionally outside work hours. I also deleted most of my social media (minus Linkedin) in the first year of the PhD, which reduced a lot of distraction. During the pandemic, I moved from a shared accommodation to my private one, where I started growing vegetables - which, in hindsight, learning from plants was such an invaluable life lesson.

[MoisesSolisLordOfAll]

Just accepted into a PhD program... I'm ready.

[mau]

I dont know if its a habit probably more of a superstition on my part…but highly recommend especially the lab goers there, never do laboratory if youre tired, hungry or just mentally distracted (e.g. something stressful at home happened). Also, if youre not in a tight deadline, if you have a lab protocol that needs the whole day, but you messed up in the middle, and repeating would mean overtime— just dont do it and practice to not let the failure get to you and move on. let tomorrow handle this task with a fresh mind, and maybe do some desk work for the remaining hours, or talk to your labmates about your mishap in a light and humored conversation on a coffee break just to help distress. This is where you schedule “failures”. If you think a protocol requires a day to finish, give it 3 days on your schedule

[yasam]

I wish I had found your channel 4 years ago.... I am in my last year and I feel I spent my years unproductive... I wish I had known these ideas... but I am still willing to apply these ideas in my life anyway.. at least for my life after phd.. Thank you for the video.

[surajpowar]

Hey Andy, I really appreciate your efforts in making these kind of videos mate. We can see your content is really real and not pretentious. It is therefore very helpful. I will be starting my PhD in Fall this year. I am making notes of tips you have shared over your videos. Just want to thank you mate!
P.S. A video about how you learned coding and overcome research difficulties will be very exciting to watch. Thanks Xx.

[emmab]

Thank you for this video - I am in the final stages of my PhD and am feeling energised by your reminders for a daily schedule! I have tried a lot of these and must remember that they have got me this far so they are going to get me to the finish line too!

[rony]

Perfect, Andy! Thank you so much for your videos! They've helped me a lot! Specially this one. I've struggled with my PhD daily routine... looking for some ways to set it in a better way.

[PerlaEscobaryadira]

I’ve watched several of your videos and love them. Thank you for the great advice! I hope this long journey will be less stressful with your tips.

[elizabethsolverson]

I had to come back here to say EATING THE FROG HAS CHANGED MY LIFE! Makes my days so much more productive and less stressful. Thanks a million!

[nonee]

Dear Andy.. you are like the supervisor or senior who prevents the freshers from making stupid mistakes.. thank you so much for your help.. wish had i found u earlier but i am glad in my final year atleast i hv u beside.

[PAScribe]

This came up on my feed and I saved it to watch it. It is like you were standing behind me and grabbed my shoulders and gave me a good hard shake. Such amazing information. It already made me think of things I should be doing to make this happen, and things I have been putting off for ages, like learning software! Thanks Andy you deserve a medal!

[kevyelyod]

Thank you Andy, I'm having lots of trouble with R&D motivation at the moment but since I found your videos I have taken your advice on board and find it is changing the way I'm doing things.

[selmanipek]

Thanks for the content. Doing a postdoc. Personally I’ve tried the morning exercise thing but I think if the most important thing you’re gonna do that day is work then that’s what I like to start with. Wake, make bed and coffee, shower, and sit right down to read papers, etc. I think that sets the tone for my day to the point that when I’m walking here and there I’ve already got things I’m working out in my head. I still like to work out 4-5 days a week but more at the end of the day.

[wentingwang]

Hi Andy. I was flooded by the papers and books this morning, and so glad to find your channel. Thank you so much for all these helpful and meaningful contents!

[karinwiebe]

Thank you so much. I think I’ve stumbled on some of these habits but it’s important to hear them articulated. I’m resolved to make them my tools for creating good work! second semester of a four year PhD just started. Trying to not let overwhelm creep in. 😊

[akshikaakalanka]

Thank you Andy, this is just reminded me of all the good habits I have been doing. I am at the last couple of months of the PhD and this helped me a lot.

[songstress]

Right now am steeped in preparing for Comprehensive Exams, but I'll be implementing this for writing my dissertation. It's great and very doable, and I love how you've emphasized quality of work time over quantity. I think where a lot of grad students and even academics get lost is in glorifying the amount of total hours they're working and wearing these like a badge of honour rather than focusing on working smart.

[mzimmer]

I've watched a lot of your videos and this is one of my favorites: lots of solid advice. Well done! Thanks!