2 min read

Research is a craft, science and an art.

There is no single way about it. We are all wired differently, and our areas of expertise are just as diverse. Notwithstanding, research is just as much about subject-expertise as it is about the process of doing research.

Whether you are already doing research as research assistant, PhD student, or postdoc, or whether you are considering learning the ropes, this brand new post in the Researchers’ Hub on Medium provides a barrel-load of resources that can help you identify your destination, execute and enjoy learning about yourself in the process. It covers resources about knowledge management systems, productivity hacks, and learning to research like an entrepreneur. Bookmark it and keep going back to it as you decide what works for you, and what doesn’t.

The Researchers’ Hub has many other specific resources to learn from.

The article builds on a piece I wrote in 2017 about research-based career opportunities in academia, industry and policy. Pieces of advice such as these are perennial and don’t go out of trend.

As with all pieces of advice and information-rich resources we can share, they are the fruit of not just of our own work and learning, but of all the people who have shaped us as individuals and researchers.

For the citations record, my Endnote library has 2k+ references. I cannot say I read all of them, because I do hoard references for later (just in case). But hundreds have shaped both my thinking and actual project deliverables.

Much research is about learning to capture, crunch and catalyse a wealth of real-world experiences to inform yet better ways of shaping the world and ourselves in the process. Because who we are as professionals extends beyond our belief about who we are, it pays to pay the dues to everyone whose work has shaped us in one way or another. This sense of gratitude, emulation and interconnectedness will at least partly affect our choice of resources to pursue the craft of research. Our own way.

Not to mention the resources that can help us tread a more intentional, essentialist path.

Happy crafting!

Consistency is the mother of mastery

– Robin Sharma