How I Used My Easy Genius To Complete A Five Year PhD Program In About Half The Time

How I Used My Easy Genius To Complete A Five Year PhD Program In About Half The Time

By Steve Wallis, PhD (award pending)


"Hello, My name is Doctor Steven E. Wallis." Those are the first words I'm supposed to speak at the ceremony. This is not the traditional handshake and a diploma ceremony of graduation. This particular ceremony occurs the day before and involves lots of laughter and silly celebrations. Within all the fun, however, this ceremony gives new graduates the chance to share some life-goals with their classmates, and gives them their first opportunity to use that prestigious word, "doctor."

The path to a doctorate of philosophy is long and rigorous. The student has access to experts in many fields of study ' and is also held to high standards of academic rigor by those amazing individuals. How many books and journal articles did I read? I don't know; but the bibliography at the end of my dissertation is single-spaced and about ten pages long. How much did I write (and re-write)? I don't know. The writing seemed like it never stopped. Then too, there was the constant mental struggle between finding new insights, and finding (what seems to be) all the related insights that everyone has ever made in the written history of humanity). Those who pass through the flames feel that the honor is well earned.

I am almost two and a half years into the program and am on track to complete my dissertation very soon. A number of people have asked me, "Steve, you are moving through the program so quickly ' how do you do it?" They are looking mostly at the amount of time I spent in the program. What they often don't know is that my schoolwork was generally of a very high quality. I was also working full time, working on a book (Easy Genius at Work) and maintaining a good relationship with my spouse. The article you are reading is my way of answering the question of how I did so well, and (especially) so quickly. In this article, I'm going to tell you about two techniques I used to increase my motivation and (to some extent) my memory as I pursued a PhD in Human and Organizational Systems at Fielding Graduate University in Santa Barbara.

Before I introduce you to my first motivational method, I should tell you that I don't believe in the traditional concept of a "God." Although I had a "born again" experience and served as an alter boy, the idea that the universe is run by some old guy sitting on a throne passing judgment just doesn't make sense to me. On the other hand, I do feel a spiritual connection to that universe. So, when Chance and I were writing about an "Existential Intelligence" I found it interesting ' but in a detached way. Shortly after I began the program, however, I decided to use my existential intelligence to boost my motivation and (to some extent) my memory.

I had just cleared some space on my bookshelves with the intent of dedicating that space to the many books I knew would be arriving like manna from Amazon. I paused for a moment, savoring the notion of knowledge to come, and it came to me that my relationship to books was more than intellectual; it was emotional, and somewhat spiritual. I decided right there that my bookshelf would be the perfect place for an "altar to learning."

I had pictures of my classmates, diversity-beads from South Africa, the cork from a celebratory bottle of wine, all set upon a fine cloth napkin. I also adorned the alter with rubber bands, paper clips, and binder clips to "magically" link myself to the knowledge. Perhaps the most important part of the alter was a ceremonial gift I had received. My first mentor had given me a small dolphin shaped candleholder and some small candles. I developed a ritual of burning a candle after I completed each assignment. As the candle burned, I silently thanked those who had helped me, and mentally reviewed the "ahas" that I had experienced along the way. I also danced around ecstatically!

The PhD program was expensive. So, I knew that if my concentration wavered it could be very costly. So, another technique I used to boost my motivation was rubbing two twenty-dollar bills together at the start of each day. I told myself that if I didn't move forward, I might as well throw those bills out the window. I didn't bother looking at the bank statement; those were just numbers on a piece of paper to me. Two twenties, on the other hand, were something I could relate to! You can buy some very nice wine or a lot of pastries with that kind of money.

I used real ones at first, then imaginary ones (just rubbing my fingers together), and then I used the twenties in my mind' until they slipped into my subconscious. The motivation remains; and occasionally surfaces when there is something that I need to do.

I also remembered reading about gustatory intelligence. And, though I did not do it on purpose, I realized that I was drinking huge quantities of tea. Now, I have been a tea drinker for some time, but never like this. I would consume several pots a day! In time, I the words came back to me from Easy Genius and I realized that I was "consuming" information as voraciously as I was consuming tea. There was some kind of linkage there. Because this was a product of my sub-conscious (and because it seemed to be working well) I stuck with it. Later, I experimented by "programming" myself with different teas. For example, Earl Grey is my "work horse" tea. Darjeeling is for luxurious non-working moments. When I had a deadline approaching and needed to work above and beyond my usual rate, I would drink a strong tea with extra caffeine.

One word of caution: this is my story and these are techniques that seem to have helped me. These techniques might help you, or they might hinder your learning. So please keep in mind that the lesson here is not, "I should do what Steve did because it worked for him." Rather the lesson to be learned is, "I should read Easy Genius http://www.easygenius.net because it helped Steve find his own success' easily."