Why you are doing a PhD is a question you must make yourself answer honestly, not only when you start, but throughout the degree. Sometimes your long term goals get lost in the day to day activities but sometimes they were never clear in the first place. Also, circumstances can change. No one, of course, can answer this question for you. However research into completion rates of PhDs shows that those who really want the degree are the most likely to finish. Therefore it would be ideal to have more than one reason to keep you going - you love research and study, you want to have the time and space to explore a topic that has always interested you, you think it's necessary for your career, you see it as a worthwhile challenge. These reasons start you off. To keep going for three years we see that there are a number of keys to motivation: having good reasons for doing it and consciously reminding yourself of them; having a topic which 'grabs' you and which works; having a rich network of contacts: your supervisor, fellow students, other academics, and of course family and friends; having the attitude that you are part of the academic scene, that you belong; being organised and feeling in control. Everyone recognises also that having something successfully completed - be it a seminar paper, section of the thesis, or published article is a great boost and motivator. Therefore, giving yourself do-able, interim goals is a wise strategy.

	Clarifying your real reasons for doing this degree.
	Coping with the transition to study.
	How is the best way to organise myself to get the whole thing done?
	Keeping your research focussed.
	Dealing with isolation in your thesis.