The Research Insider
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Weekly strategies to strengthen your research, complete your PhD or DBA on time, use AI responsibly, and navigate the academic system with confidence.
#159 - What Your PhD Examiner Is Actually Checking
Today, I am going to tell you what I am actually looking for when I open your thesis, because it is not what most candidates think.
29 July 2026
Read time: 3 minutes
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I have examined over forty-five doctoral theses.
And I can tell you that the ones that pass smoothly are never the mo...
Jul 29, 2026
dba
doctoral defence
doctoral examination
doctorate
edd
examiner
phd
phd defence
phd viva
#158 - How to Write a Thesis by Publication
Today I am walking you through that structure so you do not make the same mistake.
22 July 2026
Read time: 3 minutes
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You can have three papers in top journals and still fail your thesis by publication.
Not on the research. Not on the quality of the papers.
On the one chapter most pe...
Jul 22, 2026
dba
dissertation by publication
doctorate
edd
phd
publication
strategies
thesis
thesis by publication
#157 - "This Needs More Depth" What Your Supervisor Actually Means, And Why They Never Show You
Today, I am going to take the five most common supervision comments I hear and show you what they actually mean, what the fix looks like, and why your supervisor probably cannot show you themselves.
15 July 2026
Read time: 3 minutes
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A mentee sent me her methodology chapter last year...
Jul 15, 2026
dba
doctorate
edd
phd
strategies
supervisor
working professionals
#156 - The Part of a Doctorate Nobody Warns You About, And Why It Ends More PhDs Than the Research Does
Today, I am showing you why this happens, what is actually missing once the taught phase ends, and what I have been building to fix it.
8 July 2026
Read time: 3 minutes
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Jul 08, 2026
dba
doctorate
edd
isolation
phd
strategies
structure
working professionals
#155 - How to Turn Your Reference Library Into a Research Assistant
Today, I am showing you how to turn your library of papers into your research assistant.
1 July 2026
Read time: 3 minutes
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Jul 01, 2026
academic writing
ai tools
consensus
papers
research papers
strategies
zotero
#154 - How to Write and Submit a Paper in 30 Days
Today, I am showing you how to write and submit a paper in 30 Days, using my 4-week sequence.
24 June 2026
Read time: 3 minutes
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I have published more than 130 papers.
The ones I wrote in 30 days were no worse than the ones that took six months.
That surprises people. They assume faste...
Jun 24, 2026
academic writing
papers
publications
research papers
strategies
#153 - How to Use the PRISMA Flowchart for a Systematic Literature Review
Today, I am showing you how to use the PRISMA framework properly to develop a systematic Literature Review paper.
17 June 2026
Read time: 3 minutes
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Before we start: free live session the week after next.
If your literature review feels like a vortex right now, you are not alone. Ev...
Jun 17, 2026
academic writing
dissertation
doctorate
literature review
papers
phd
prisma
professionals doctorate
review types
slr
systematic review
#152 - How to Choose Your Literature Review Type
Today, I am showing you how to select the most appropriate Literature Review Type for your PhD, DBA or research.
10 June 2026
Read time: 3 minutes
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Before we start: free live session the week after next.
If your literature review feels like a vortex right now, you are not alone. Eve...
Jun 10, 2026
academic writing
dissertation
doctorate
literature review
narrative review
papers
phd
professionals doctorate
review types
systematic review
#151 - How to Know If You Have Read Enough for Your PhD, And Are Ready to Start Writing
Today I am giving you the three signals that tell you the reading has done its job, so you can stop waiting for a feeling of readiness that rarely arrives and start writing instead.
3 June 2026
Read time: 3 minutes
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Jun 03, 2026
academic writing
dissertation
doctorate
papers
phd
professionals doctorate
reading
strategies
thesis
writing
#150 - How to Turn Your PhD Thesis into Research Papers: The 2+2 Publication Strategy
Today I am giving you the strategy a mentor showed me after my postdoc that changed everything.
27 May 2026
Read time: 4 minutes
Offers and opportunities:
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May 27, 2026
dissertation
doctorate
journal
papers
phd
professionals doctorate
publication
thesis
#149 - Which Doctorate Is Right for You? What Universities Will Not Tell You
Today I am laying out the four main doctoral pathways side by side, with an honest comparison of what each one actually involves, who it is for, and what it leads to.
20 May 2026
Read time: 3 minutes
Offers and opportunities:
Supporting our sponsors directly helps me continue deliveri...
May 20, 2026
dba
doctorate
drph
edba
edd
executive doctorate
phd
professionals doctorate
#148 - How to Design Your PhD Methodology: The 6-Step Methodology Compass Framework
Today I am walking you through the six steps in the right order, the same order I use with every mentee, so your methodology chapter holds together from top to bottom and your examiner cannot pull it apart.
13 May 2026
Read time: 3 minutes
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P.S. I'm live in the comments under every Lin...
May 13, 2026
dba
doctorate
journal
methodology
methods
phd
thesis