Resources

The Support-Challenge Matrix was developed by John Blakey and Ian Day and presented in their book, Challenging Coaching. The matrix maps the level of support your supervisor provides against the level of challenge they set for you, and is helpful for thinking about the PhD supervisory relationship. The Support-Challenge Matrix High Challenge + Low Support = Anxiety: Maybe it’s too much, too soon. Your supervisor is expecting you to write a literature review when you haven’t even found out where the toilets are. The task feels overwhelming, but you lack the confidence to ask for help. Awash with imposter feelings, this is evidence that you shouldn’t be doing a PhD. This can happen when a supervisor unconsciously adopts the Persecutor role in the Drama Triangle. Low Challenge + Low Support = Inertia: Nobody’s pushing you or showing you what’s required. You’ve been left to figure it out for yourself, but there are few clues. As Newton famously explained, you’ll be stuck until an external force is exerted upon you. Low Challenge + High Support = Dependency: Although this is a desirable situation in the first month of your PhD, you can’t remain dependent. It’s vital that you become an independent researcher and start solving some tricky problems on your own. A supervisor who encourages dependency might have unconsciously adopted the Rescuer role in the Drama Triangle. High Challenge + High Support = Progress: This is the sweet spot! Your supervisor is challenging you to pursue that research problem and to make your own mistakes, but they’ve got your back in case you experience any major issues. Knowing we have a safety net makes us more willing to take those necessary risks. High Challenge + High Support is a Win-Win, where you get the support you need and your supervisor gets credit for another successful completion. If you feel the balance isn’t quite right in your supervisory relationship, you can use this matrix to initiate a conversation with your supervisor. Yes, it might be an uncomfortable conversation, but it’s the only way to make progress. ...

When you start a PhD, you’ve probably emerged from a taught programme, such as an undergraduate or Masters’ degree. At that level, you’re used to a lot of structure and explicit deadlines. As a doctoral researcher, though, you need to leave behind that student identity and become independent. This means assuming more responsibility as the PhD progresses. That’s the only way you can make and defend an original and significant contribution to knowledge. ...

Here are the resources from my workshop Working with Your PhD Supervisor. Books 📚 Words that Change Minds by Shelle Rose Charvet The Unwritten Rules of PhD Research by Gordon Rugg & Marian Petre Thanks for the Feedback by Douglas Stone & Sheila Heen Difficult Conversations: How to Discuss What Matters Most by Stone, Patton, & Heen Setting Boundaries that Stick by Juliane Taylor Shore Websites 🕸️ PhD Toolkit The Thesis Whisperer Resources 🧭 Expectations in Research Supervision Questionnaire (PDF) PhD Supervision Meeting Agenda (MS Word) Co-Supervisor Responsibility Matrix (MS Word) Achieving a Win-Win The Drama Triangle The Hersey-Blanchard Model of Situational Leadership The Support-Challenge Matrix Beyond the Feedback Sandwich Implementing Feedback from your Supervisor

Devised by Dr Peter Nixon, the Human Function Curve shows the relationship between pressure and performance. If there’s minimal pressure, we don’t perform; we’re just bored and understimulated.With a little more pressure, we enter our Comfort Zone. Although, as the name suggests, this feels nice, researchers won’t find new ideas by staying here too long. As the pressure mounts, we enter the Stretch Zone. This is where we want to be most of the time: it’s the sweet spot between pressure and performance. ...

You might have come across the idea of achieving a Win-Win in a situation, which maps quite neatly with the Drama Triangle. This matrix shows the four possible outcomes based on who wins or loses in a conflict or disagreement: The Win-Win Matrix If you make an unreasonable demand on your supervisor, you become a Persecutor. Although you might win in the short term because they become a Victim or Rescuer and concede to you, it’s not going to be an effective long-term solution. They’ll probably feel resentful and might then also become a Persecutor. Then you have a vampire battle on your hands. ...

Developed by Stephen Karpman, the Drama Triangle provides a social model of human interaction. Specifically, it describes the connection between personal responsibility and power in conflicts, revealing the shifting and often destructive roles people play. These roles form a ’triangle’ because people typically cycle between them, with each role triggering the others in a self-perpetuating pattern. These unhelpful behaviours occur in many situations, including supervisory relationships in the workplace. The three roles are the Victim, the Rescuer, and the Persecutor: ...

Here are the resources from my workshop on Saying No: Establishing Healthy Boundaries in Academia. Books 📚 Burnout by Emily & Amelia Nagasaki Slow Productivity by Cal Newport The Productive Researcher by Mark S. Reed The Joy of Being Selfish by Michelle Elman Setting Boundaries that Stick by Juliane Taylor Shore Resources 🧭 The Eisenhower Matrix The Human Function Curve App 💻 Eisenhower Matrix app (experimental!)