Writing a dissertation is full of black holes that can swallow you up.
Boldness allows you to embrace hope and can make the impossible seem possible.
In the short story “Incoming Tide,” Pulitzer Prize winning writer Elizabeth Strout captures the essence of what might result from the interplay of boldness, hope, and perseverance.
“Incoming Tide,” from Strout’s collection entitled Olive Kitteridge, is told from the point of view of a young doctor, who has never recovered emotionally from a tragedy in his family. He has returned to the town where he lived as a child.
It’s clear that he plans to end his life.
But first he encounters a former teacher whose company and meandering conversation delays his plan and then at her urging, he’s called to do something bold.
The bold rescue of someone else also rescues him: “he thought he would like the moment to be forever…Look how she wanted to live, look how she wanted to hold on.”
Consider the power of boldness.
You might need someone who believes in you and knows what you can do in order for you to do something bold. You might have to be pushed.
You might even be avoiding doing something bold because you know that it could very likely lead to your feeling hopeful. Once you let in some hope, then who knows what you might have to do!
And what promises do you have that even with hope, you’ll reach your goal?
But it’s worth the gamble. Once you have hope, perseverance becomes much easier.
Have you read “Incoming Tide”?
What have you read or what has occurred that inspires you to be bold?
I’d love to hear from you.
New Year’s Greetings,
Nancy
Nancy Whichard, Ph.D., PCC
Your International Dissertation Coach and Academic Career Coach
www.nancywhichard.com
www.dissertationbootcamp.net
www.usingyourstrengths.com