Lifeline Exercise

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At this point in time, you are likely new to your doctoral program, and you are experiencing all the excitement and trepidation of being a doctoral student. Follow the
Lifeline Exercise Instructions



to complete the exercise to get a better understanding of your pathway to doctoral studies.

As you feel comfortable, post answers to the following questions:

• What events in your life have led you to be a doctoral student at this point in your life?


• What does the lifeline exercise tell you about where you are today and how you got here?


• What does this tell you about yourself?

doctoral research Process RES 8101 LIFELINE EXERCISE LIFELINE EXERCISE: HOW DID I GET HERE? • Creative process for you to capture key moments in your life • Self reflection exercise can be useful to review your personal history and reflect upon where you have been and where you might be going • Can help you capture significant events in your life and may enable you to create a more integrated view of your life journey • Patterns may emerge that help you understand yourself better • The lifeline exercise is a tool for exploring who you are, what you’ve done and how you got to where you are today CREATE THE TIMELINE 1. Take a sheet of paper and turn it ‘landscape’ 2. Draw a horizontal line across the middle of the paper. Note your age at the right-hand end of the line and some interim ages along the line 3. Put a ‘plus’ (+) above the horizontal line (to signify times that you look back on with pleasure) and a ‘minus’ (-) below the line (to signify those times when things were not going well) + - 35 5820 ADD LIFE EVENTS • Now write in your significant life events, including both good and bad events that have occurred in your life to date—include personal, academic, and work • You may use words or pictures • Connect up the points you have marked + - College First job Lost boyfriend Colorado Major illness Educator 5820 35 LIFELINE EXERCISE REFLECTION Step back and look at the entire picture of your life • Are there patterns that you observe as you review your lifeline? • What does the lifeline show about yourself? • What do you notice about your lifeline and the events that are significant to you? • What do these events have in common? • How are they different? • What do these patterns tell you about yourself? LIFELINE EXERCISE CONCLUSIONS You all ended up in the same “place” – here. • What are some similarities in the stories? • What are stands out? • What are some surprises? Res 8101�Lifeline exercise Lifeline exercise: HoW did I get here? Create the timeline Add life events Lifeline Exercise Reflection Lifeline Exercise conclusions