Thursday 2 September 2010

Breathe out... and *relax*

... and I quote "Submitted On 02 September 2010 at 20:26:07 (UK Time)".  That's the detail for my latest TMA.

Done.  Submitted.  Finito.  *Phew*

There's an incredible relief which washes over me each and every time I click "submit" on my Student Homepage.  Aah.  And it's the same relief every time, regardless of how I think I might've done.  Take this TMA for example; I understood the subject and grasped the main concepts well enough when I was reading the material, but when it came time to write the TMA I had an awful feeling that I've completely misunderstood the two main objections I have to expound so in my head I've already resigned myself to the thought that I might've done pretty badly on this one (my better half tried to remind me that this happens every time I write a TMA and I always seem to do really well, but I suspect this time will be the exception).  But you know what, there's nothing I can do about it now that it's submitted so I'm not going to waste my energy beating myself up about it and I'm not going to spend the next 2 weeks (or however long it is before my tutor gets the time to mark this batch) worrying myself silly about what mark I'm going to get.  The main thing for me is that I've done it.  I've read the necessary material and actually written the essay in plain English and submitted it ON TIME.

You see it's not just about getting the good results and getting as close to a First as I can.  For me it's as much about proving that I can stick to the commitment I signed up for.  I'm shamefully known for being prone to fads.  At some point in my life I've been interested in just about everything and then almost as quickly lost interest (or been distracted by some other new interest) so if I can succeed with each TMA and treat it as one bite-sized piece of a bigger pizza then before I know it I'll be tossing dough and calling myself Francesca.

I'm also known for vague references...

5 comments:

  1. I know what you mean about proving yourself capable of the commitment, I have a history of starting and not finishing things, but I'm determined this will be different and I am going to come out the other side with a degree

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  2. So glad to hear I'm not alone in the history of poor committment stakes.

    One of the things I love about the OU's approach is that you can do it in smaller stages. You can aim to get the certificate first, THEN top it up to a diploma, THEN aim for the degree. That way it doesn't seem as daunting.

    That's the plan of attack I intend to take for my MSc, it'll make it easier to stick to I think.

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  3. That'll be a Griller Killer for me then with extra anchovies and chillies !!

    Well done Francesca, papa eesa proud ;o)

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  4. Yes, I know the feeling al too well. Enjoy!! ( Unfortunately I am still working on a TMA of which the cut-off date was yesterday. Procrastination is a drug some say. )

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  5. If procrastination is a drug then I'm checking my other half into the Betty Ford clinic ASAP!!

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