Why Resilience is Part of Research The Knowledge Journey Why Resilience is Part of Research

As learning starts we travel quickly & go far As we start to learn at school we learn a lot and we travel quickly because the landscape of knowledge and the vehicles for learning are set up to make it easy for us to learn

We might need to slow down Well understood knowledge might not be clear and that will slow down but as we get there things become clearer

Knowledge become as path less travelled As we learn more we move to areas that few have been before and while we aren’t going somewhere completely new we might see some new and interesting things

Critical decision making skills are developed As we consider newly developing knowledge our skills of critical assessment of which paths others have taken becomes more acute and it helps us decide what is most likely to be the right way

Investigating where others have been is consuming The research findings that have been produced and that we base our own research on can lead in many different directions. It can be consuming to investigate all of these routes and that is a vital part of research but it can also limit the focus on our own goals. Getting the balance right between knowing the subject comprehensively and getting sidetracted can be difficult one to strike. Understanding what you project is far should help with this. Also not dealing with everything as a question you need to answer might help. If something is interesting but ultimately unrelated to what you are looking for it might be best to leave that as interesting at least for now.

Researchers go to new places As we travel to new areas of knowledge the landscape the terrain is likely to become difficult and even with a team progress is likely to be slow

Recently there has been some consternation that many research findings cannot be reproduced. Who believes this is because they are made up? Mostly I’m sure the results are true but the increasing complexity of science will mean it is increasingly difficult for findings of new research to be repeated. There are so many variables, this means you may well be trying something that works one day but not the next. We can help ourselves by trying to keep our protocols as simple as possible and trying not to deviate from those protocols if it can be avoided but we have to recognise this itself can be difficult particularly when we are dealing with living systems.

The goal is obvious but the route is opaque It is often the case that you can see clearly the place you want to get to but the route is not at all clear and only by starting down

Many lines of investigation will lead nowhere Top quality research is the journey into the unknown, there you will find dead ends that others have already come to and things that cannot be traversed deciding where you press on are keep trying and where you go back and try a different way is one of the most difficult bits of critical analysis anyone ever has to do.

Maybe the goals are unrealistic Researchers can often find the solution to a problem can be seen but the project is not tractable with the tools that are currently available and the time they have.

Reaching a summit Reaching the summit of our own exploration of knowledge might only serve to show there are many other places we could explore.

What we learn might become redundant Researchers can find they have invested significant time and effort developing something that won’t take them any further. Try to think of this objectively the ability to develop that way of gaining knowledge is something you can keep and use again. You never know if those techniques might be useful for a different project.

The skills When it comes to what you are getting out of your experience recognising that not everything you did was easy is every bit as important as the research findings and the technical skills you gained. So try not to get too downhearted if things are difficult you are learning how to cope with those complex problems of unexpected results. project management in difficult circumstances, dealing with moving or intangible targets, complex working relationships and work-life balance with strong demands.

Exploring is not an end It is not just about where we can get to but when we can do with what we have found, building on the new ground can be difficult but we know it is possible.

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