How to manage a research project?

 At the beginning of your project, you will define your research question and the sub-questions. Let these sub-questions guide you in identifying the most important tasks you need to complete to answer your research question and schedule your time accordingly.

Identify your research question
Your research question is the core of your work. You need to identify if a task is urgent or not, and important or not, to see where its priority lies. To know how important a task is, you need to know how it relates to your research question. At the beginning of your project, identify your research question and the related sub-questions. Let these sub-questions be your guide on determining the most important tasks you need to carry out to come to an answer foryour research question, and schedule your time accordingly.

Master the literature
You can’t define your research question before you have a good grasp of the literature. Don’t neglect your literature review as the cornerstone of your work.Read broadly and deeply, and frequently. Know your classics.

Learn planning skills
When you know what to do (your research question and its sub-questions), and you have the background to do it (the literature), you need to plan your time. Learn how to use calendars and to do lists to move your work forward. Plan per semester, per week, and per day. Don’t plan more than 75% of your time. Plan the most important elements, the “big rocks” first. Leave less important things like email and admin to fill the gaps in your planning at the end.

Identify your checkpoints
Add checkpoints to your planning. Use externally imposed deadlines such as conference papers that need to be written and meetings with your supervisor to finish certain parts of your research (and to document these!). Add self-imposed deadlines to make sure you finish your research and your dissertation within your allotted time.

Use technology to your advantage
Don’t become a slave to technology by trying out every possible time management app, but fill your toolbox with useful tools. Use cloud-based applications that sync across your devices. Use lists and calendars wisely. Delete applications that distract you or turn off notifications. Manage the literature with reference software. Make sure your documents are always backed up.

Take notes
You will not remember the details of your experiments when you write your project. Keep a research diary. Make notes of your work and your thought processes. Document your work along the way: how you prepared, why you made certain decisions, what your assumptions were, and which tasks were crucial in making those decisions. Later, you will be able to draw on these sources to inform a possible presentation.