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The New Social Worker is the quarterly magazine for social work students and recent graduates, focusing on social work careers for those new to the profession. This blog is a companion to the free online magazine at http://www.socialworker.com.

Friday, October 16, 2009

Midnight oil; it's a'burning

"Wee spend our mid-day sweat, or mid-night oyle;
Wee tyre the night in thought; the day in toyle."
(The English author Francis Quarles wrote in Emblemes, 1635)

I DON'T LITERALLY HAVE TO WORK BY THE LIGHT OF AN OIL LAMP, of course, though I sometimes light a candle when I work late into the night. Tonight I am using the phrase figuratively, and only alluding back to its use before electric lighting.

My assignment is not daunting, which is probably why I have put it off until now. I have become quite adept at doing literature reviews, as our prof has assigned six in all and this is No. 4. I actually enjoy reading the research articles and then analyzing them for strengths and weaknesses, gaps and methods. I hope to do research projects as a professional, so I am learning something from this process.

I have definitely found a work style that fits my personality while in grad school. I was telling a friend today that I truly believe getting a Master's degree has cured me of some of my perfectionism. How? Well, let me tell you. I have stopped "over-doing." And I still get high marks. This teaches me that it's usually good enough when I finish. I don't have to over-think every step, every dotted "i" and crossed "t."

How about you? I'd love to hear about your lessons learned while in school.

~Ms. T. J.

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