How can PhD students make the most of this fierce journey? What are the keys to overcoming some stressful situations and profiting from the most joyful moments?  Experts can offer much wisdom in this regard! We were fortunate to have Christina Sichtmann join us for a session at the 2023 IFERA Doctoral Consortium. She is a marketing scientist and has founded the Fly High Academy with which she supports academic scholars to be more productive and creative (www.flyhigh.academy).

Session overview

The session was initiated with a survey of the students’ attendees. Later, with Christina’s guidance, the PhD students in family business navigated through their biggest challenges and their biggest personal resources. The balance of these two elements indicated the student’s perceived stress level. Therefore, it’s not just the threat students feel but also the tools we have available to address that threat.

How is the situation in our IFERA community?

The survey talked by itself. Among the main fears of the PhD students in family business we encounter: “I sometimes question how good I am at doing research”, “I sometimes feel nervous”, and “I feel pressured as my role as a PhD student”. According to the survey, to counterbalance these drawbacks, our PhD students emphasize the biggest personnel resources by persevering, enjoying the people they work with, being intrinsically motivated, and trying to find a calm mind.

Considering this, what does the expert voice say? Christina highlighted in the session three main ideas that can help drive the rollercoaster of this passionate journey.

1. Clear intention. Clarifying my WHY. Why am I pursuing a PhD? Remembering this serves as an engine during the toughest moments. It motivates to persevere despite the challenges. Any motivation is fine, as long as it serves one’s pursuit.
2. Good working routines. 25 minutes of writing every day could be enough. Thus, we don’t need whole days of research but some small pieces every day. The subconscious is constantly at work, even when we’re not aware of it. Diet, exercise, and relaxation are also included in the list of recommendable habits.
3. Self-care. This means making sure to nourish your body with healthy foods, engaging in regular physical activity to keep your body strong and energized, and taking intentional breaks to relax and recharge.

A quick chat with Christina: main takeaways!

After the session, we had the opportunity to extend our discussion with Christina Sitchmann and delve into her motivations for working with PhD students and the future of the family business community. 

• Why work with Ph.D. students? What was your main motivation for starting this mental health project?

I like supporting young people and making their life a little easier. Looking back on the beginnings of my academic career, I realize I could have worried much less. But when you’re in the eye of the storm, it’s difficult to see that. These days, PhD students are facing significant pressure and intense competition. Thus, finding coping strategies and knowing your needs in order to  fully develop your potential from the initial stages can be the best investment for your mental health in future academic career steps. I am particularly interested in supporting young women. For women, it’s harder to succeed in this competition, especially when they want to have children. The timing of starting a family and building a scientific reputation coincide. Scientific success is still linked to how much we publish in top journals. And publication success is a function of the time we have for research. Women still take on the majority of caregiving responsibilities and also want to spend time with their children. Naturally, this time is then lacking for working on publications. To successfully master this phase, it’s necessary to have strategies ready in your toolkit for organizing well and taking good care of yourself.

• Do you think that mental health issues among PhD students have always been there but are now receiving greater visibility? Or, on the contrary, do you think the frequency and severity of these disorders are currently higher?

There have always been issues. Even during my time as a doctoral student, there were quite a few PhD students who procrastinated and never finished writing their doctoral thesis. However, digitalisation escalates the problem. Doing research needs focus, enough time, and relaxation in order to be creative. One of the problems that we observe nowadays is that we are required to be productive rather than creative. PhD students face considerable time constraints. They rarely have the opportunity to engage in learning that may seem unnecessary or unrelated to their immediate goals, such as exploring methods and theories that are not directly applicable to their current research project. In fact, the time as a PhD student should be a period when this opportunity exists, as it forms the foundation for one’s academic career. A significant problem I see is also the dopamine kicks we get from social media and emails. Many struggle to enter a state of deep work because they are constantly online. However, to conduct excellent research, we need to focus 100%, and we must find ways to achieve deep concentration.

• One of the main challenges is the relationship with the supervisor and the academic community. How can we foster collaboration between PhD students, senior scholars, and academic institutions to address mental health disparities and promote well-being in the family business research community?

One of the main issues when we talk about mental health is that people often don’t define their goals and intentions. When it comes to the relationship with their supervisor, doctoral students often don’t explicitly define what they want and expect from their supervisors, and vice versa. For example, some PhD students are disappointed because they expect more support than they actually get. As a doctoral student, I recommend taking some time to define expectations, goals and intentions which – most importantly- should be communicated to the supervisor.  This also involves cultivating a growth mindset. Instead of fearing criticism for our work when we get feedback, we should view perceived mistakes as opportunities for improvement.

• Could you summarise a piece of advice for PhD students in one sentence?

For me, the most important thing is to trust in yourself and be open to everything that happens during the process. Also, as mentioned, developing a growth mindset helps people enjoy the journey because the ups and downs are part of the process. This means embracing challenges, persisting in the face of setbacks, seeing effort as a path to mastery, learning from criticism, and finding inspiration in the success of others. Remember that in difficult times, you can discover the most about yourself by having the courage to introspect. As such, the PhD is not only a professional advancement but also entails a personal development process.

Where to go next?

In IFERA, we cherish the mental well-being of our young talents and the future of the field. That’s why, for this Doctoral Consortium in 2024, we have prepared a round-table session where PhD students can openly discuss their concerns and find support within the rest of the community. Don’t miss out on updates; stay tuned!