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Prolific Researcher Playbook by Bianca Pereira

Everyone can be a researcher. Weekly tips on how to beat perfectionism, manage your knowledge, and create your original contribution.

Featured Post

The ABC of building your Research Vision

Enrollments for the PKM for Research Mentorship are opening soon. Join the waitlist to be the first to know when enrolments open. Hello Reader, Welcome to the first issue of the Research Roadmap series. Today it is all about creating your Research Vision. A Research Vision is the future you are trying to build. It is the reason why you are conducting the research and, when comunicating to others, why you are asking people to fund it or give it any attention. There are three options on how to...

Enrollments for the PKM for Research Mentorship are opening soon. Join the waitlist to be the first to know when enrolments open. Hello Reader, Today we start a new series in the Playbook covering the different steps of a Research Roadmap and how you can build a Knowledge Practice that helps you each step of the way. The roadmap is divided into 3 phases: Phase 1. Building Expertise Research Vision Problem Definition Knowledge Gap Literature Review Reference Management Research Question Phase...

Hello Reader, Would you like a FREE Walking Tour? 😊 This is a practice I have loved since my student days when I travelled on a low budget. Whenever I arrived in a new city, I would look for a FREE Walking Tour. The idea is simple: you get a tour as good, if not better, than those paid ones out there. At the end, you decide to pay how much it is worth based on the value you received and your ability to pay. This business model really resonates with me, so I want to bring it into the digital...

Before we jump into today’s Playbook I want to: thank you for being a subscriber 🙏🏻 You have been with me for a while and I appreciate we can keep in touch weekly. ask: Is there a specific question or issue you would like to address in Research or Personal Knowledge Management? Reply to this email and let me know—I’ll make it the focus of a future issue. Hello Reader, Today I want to share something personal with you rather than the usual how-to. I hope that is okay. I am a multi-passionate...

Hello Reader, The topic for today’s newsletter comes from a reader’s request: How do you use active note-taking to formulate a research question? Creating a research question isn’t something we do in one go. It is an iterative process of reflection, research, and refinement. Active note-taking, where you actively explore and express your thoughts through writing, is crucial in this process. So, let’s break it down step by step. Step 1. Reflection Let us start from where you are. The goal here...

Hello Reader, When I studied in Brazil over a decade ago, my friends often mentioned the story of an “eccentric” professor (a real person). Legend has it that he would travel to the countryside on weekends, without Internet or electricity (!). He would bring a printed article he wanted to study and pen and paper for his reflections on theoretical math. He would spend the weekend deeply engaging with that study, taking breaks, enjoying nature, and sleeping at sunset (remember, no...

Hello Reader, In the last weeks, I have been connecting with researchers on LinkedIn and asking them a simple question: “How are you making your research journey enjoyable despite the pressures and uncertainties intrinsic to research?” I believe research should be enjoyable and easy. The more enjoyable, the happier we feel and the easier the process becomes. The easier it becomes the more positive impact the result of our research can create in the world. Today I would like to share two of...

Hello Reader, Some people believe you should struggle when doing research. I disagree! Challenging? Yes. An uncertain journey? For sure. But a struggle? There is no need for that. Instead, let's remove as much friction as possible from our learning, thinking, and writing processes. In today’s Playbook let’s review 4 steps to remove friction from your research. 1. Start a conscious Personal Knowledge Management (PKM) practice Personal Knowledge Management (PKM) is the coordination and...

Hello Reader, Most people complaint they don’t have an overview of their knowledge: What domains of knowledge do you know the most about? What are your particular topics of expertise? How does your knowledge transfer between domains? How does your expertise differ from the expert next door? Those are questions that everyone wanting to be original should know or occasionally think about. Of course, you can always take a piece of paper now and start reflecting on these questions based on your...

Hello Reader, Today we discuss bias in research and how we can deal with it. It is good to have an opinion, but we don't want the result of our research to be "just our opinion". Instead, we want to understand a phenomenon in a "realistic" manner. We try to be "objective". Unfortunately, it is impossible to see the world without having a perspective. So, on a personal level, objectivity is impossible. Instead, every time we see things from a given perspective, we are introducing bias. Every...