This is one of my core beliefs — more than a belief, actually — it’s kind of wired into the way I am. If something isn’t accessible or I can’t find a way to make it accessible, I just lose interest.

But while accessible writing is a Good Thing, it can be hard to be simple (that’s what editing is for). Let me tell you a little story…

I currently write psycho-legal reports, which in many ways are mini-dissertations:

      
    Your…

        Is My….
    
        Literature Review 
        File Review (everything possible to know about the person’s background, injury, treatment,etc.)
    
        Methods
        Assessment Process (how I will assess, using what tools, looking for what)
    
        Results
        Assessment Results (what I found)
    
        Discussion 
        Interpretation and Recommendations Section (what do my results mean, what should happen from here)
    
        Advisor and Committee Feedback
        Receiving reports from other experts that challenge my process, results, interpretations, and/or recommendations
    
        Oral Defense 
        Court Testimony and being questioned by both the defense and plaintiff lawyers

Invariably, after spending (way too many) years writing the dissertation, for years I still…
....tried to fit in everything that might come up,
…tried to address every objection before it could be raised,
…included every bit of evidence I saw in the files I reviewed and in the assessment data I found myself.

I didn’t want to omit anything that could leave me open to being challenged.

This also invariably meant every report took (way) longer than it should and was a much more painful process than it could be. What could and should take less than 10 hours and easily be done within 2 weeks would take me more than twice that amount of time and not be finished for 2 months or more!

I didn’t like this process for me and I certainly don’t want this for you.

It’s frustrating, tedious, and de-motivating. I had to force myself to even open the document’s file. Anything else was more interesting (I know you know what I mean — who ever thought doing the dishes or the laundry would be so engaging??). But I learned this dysfunctional pattern during my own dissertation years and the way my advisor reviewed my 342 (approximately — give or take 500) drafts. It took me years of “dissertation recovery” to get past this.

That’s why I coach my UnDissertationers to “keep it simple”, to take on and write “just enough” to keep them out of exactly that mess. I believe that your work will be easier to complete and most valuable if it’s accessible.

And if it’s not accessible, it’s not worth doing, eh?… you will feel more discouraged and overwhelmed while you are working on it.

And your advisor will feel the difference as well. Really — who wants to read something they have to work way too hard to understand ?

If it’s not accessible...

it will take 2-3 times longer to get the same initial draft
it will make you less confident about your work
it will slow down getting feedback from your advisor and committee (as well as the clarity of changes they want you to make)
it will slow down your editing (because you’ll have so much more to wrestle with and so many more changes to make)
it will make your oral defense more challenging.

So — let’s make it accessible,yes?

Here’s how you can use some of the same strategies I’ve learned to use:

When you write...

    
        You Can…

        Like I do when I… 

        Use bullet points, then connect the dots to create text
        Note down the essentials, then insert connecting words
    
        Draft first the way you would talk 
        Write as if I were explaining my findings and opinion to the client or a jury or judge
    
        Be as simple and direct as you can be 
        Am careful about what I say (it often is a court document, after all), but I know there will be fewer questions and I’ll be more convincing the simpler and more direct I can be in my explanations.
    
Use diagrams if the issues are getting too complex
        diagram out the inter-relationships between brain function, sleep, pain, and emotional regulation - a picture is worth 1000 words, right?

        Use the actual bullet points, etc. to strip the complexity down to the essentials

        Use the bullets to help me see the gaps, if they’re there as well as knowing it helps my audience to focus just on what I want them to hear

There are other strategies I use and that I’ve seen successfully used in dissertations where the information to be shared is complex, but alway, always, we find a solution that increases the approachability of the material.

Simpler is more understandable. Direct is more understandable. More understandable is more convincing.

If you find yourself losing interest in your dissertation topic or writing about it, it might be time to check and see if this is happening for you too.

In our UnDissertation groups, we sometimes share material with each other to get ideas on how to simplify it or present it. You can try this same thing by sharing with another grad student or — to make it really approachable — share with someone who knows nothing about your area of research. If they can follow your take-home meaning — voila! — you’ve achieved accessibility! (And you’ll likely find yourself even more enthusiastic about your work as a side-benefit…)

What do you think? Try this and share how it goes or give me an example of a tricky issue you need to make accessible. We'll see what we can do...