Introduction

Writing my dissertation has been the most difficult, grueling, and gratifying task I've ever

undertaken. It was a long and hard road not just for me but also for those who had supported me

throughout the process. It's easy to become sidetracked, delay, and succumb to distractions, in

my experience. However, with determination and hard effort, the finish line may be reached.

It was a life-changing event for me, a self-discovery of how much I could persist in order to

achieve something good. My graduation was a life-changing event for me; once-in-a-lifetime

achievement of which I am extremely proud and thankful. The event taught me that I am capable

of far more than I previously believed. It had an impact on me. I emerged stronger and more

capable.

Although it was primarily an academic activity, physical endurance to multitask and emotional

fortitude to endure in the face of life-changing circumstances were essential components in

realizing my ambition. I'm more optimistic about the future now that I've overcome my anxieties

and limitations.

Given the criticism and direction I was receiving from my academic institution, I saw the

significance of performing reflective practice in parallel before beginning my dissertation (Hoult,

2006). As a consequence, I decided to take the Myers Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) test to

discover more about how my personality type influences my learning preferences (Briggs-Myers

& Myers, 1980). I discovered that I was a ‘reflector,' or someone who is better at ease when

given time to think about unfamiliar situations, based on this (and my later prepared studies on

learning styles) (Honey & Mumford, 2000). While I did exhibit some 'activist' inclinations (I am

always keen to explore new challenges). My classmates frequently see me as too cautious (or
even sluggish) since I like to observe and collect/collate information before developing and

expressing a larger knowledge (Honey & Mumford, 2000). As a result, I made the decision to

keep a diary during my studies in order to record and integrate both my actions and the thoughts

and attitudes I was experiencing/displaying at the time (Williams et al, 2012).

Because the entries provided the crucial material needed to inspire me to learn, adapt, and

evolve, I was able to embrace Kolb's cyclical model of learning when I built my reflective

learning around this diary (Kolb, 1984). The journal supported the required learning to help me

modify my methods in the future ('Think'), and ensured that I established a personal training and

development plan to guarantee that I gained the skills and experience necessary ('Plan') (Kolb,

1984). However, an early assessment of my journal entries revealed the significance of my

emotional state and sentiments to my job activities and learning techniques, and I altered this

strategy to use Gibbs' experiential learning cycle (1988).

While there were other learning opportunities and areas for training and growth highlighted, one

problem in particular emerged as the most significant source of information: my attitudes,

sentiments, and approach to the core research necessary for my dissertation (Kumar, 2014).

Gibbs' experiential learning cycle is used to illustrate the essential ideas (Gibbs, 1988).

Feelings

Though it was often challenging to push myself to perform the work, I loved the research and

writing and discovered that the job was far more doable than I had anticipated. I divided my

project into five sections, the first of which was planning. This was the most challenging step

since I had to connect my ideas for what I wanted to write about with a relevant topic and actual

knowledge. I began my investigation after deciding on a topic. Researching and reading began
off fascinating as I learned more about evaluating managers' views on the incentives, examining

how employees consent to receive these positive messages, and motivating employees to work

more and more efficiently, but as I got closer to the finish, the material I read seemed somewhat

repetitious, and it grew irritating when I couldn't locate what I wanted. I enjoyed conducting my

own research and conducting interviews and collecting data through survey because I felt like I

was able to contribute to the field and create something new with this research. Writing an

outline was my favorite part because it felt like I was putting together a map or a puzzle. I

compiled quotes and material from lot of books and readings. This plan was critical to the paper's

success and served as a useful reference throughout the writing process. Because of my precise

outline, writing the fourth section was simple, and I was astonished at how fast I filled many two

pages regarding how employees perceive extrinsic and inherent incentives and how this

perspective influences motivational factors. The last part was giving a presentation of my thesis;

despite my nerves, I was delighted to share my findings to teachers and students, and even more

proud when they were well received. Following my presentation, several people came to me and

said they felt I had an intriguing topic and that my presentation had provided them with useful

information. It took a semester's worth of effort. Late nights reading 50-page publications,

aching fingers from typing as fast as my ideas processed, hours revising the same words, and

frantically pacing while practicing my presentation, but I am happy of the end result.

I can now look back and see how beneficial this experience was to me as a student and as a

young person professional working in the non-profit sector skills in research and writing are

appreciated in academia sector. Since grant writing is something I'm interested in, I'm lot more

secure in my writing and research abilities. In virtually any professional environment, presenting

skills are essential, and I believe the presentation element of my thesis has aided in that
development. Working with Professor Dr Larry has also provided me with the chance to build a

mentor/mentee connection. In virtually any professional environment, presenting skills are

essential, and I believe the presentation element of my thesis has aided in that development.

Evaluation

Reflecting on this experience, I can see that my ability to plan and schedule the interview

processes required to support my primary research is solid. Each responder understood the

direction of the study I was conducting, the questions to be asked and the reasoning behind them,

and they were completely involved in the process (due in part to the first survey method) I was

totally committed to the programme I had started (Saunders et al, 2009). However, this

procedure was hampered by my weak interpersonal skills and lack of preparation for the face-to-

face interviews. In other words, even though the study questions looked to be valid, the

researcher did not.

I felt disappointed with myself, and my sentiments were heightened when I heard several of the

responders express dissatisfaction and displeasure. The apparent quality of the study questions

and the original survey that had been provided to respondents, however, helped to alleviate the

issue. Three of the respondents remained engaged following these unsatisfactory initial sessions,

as demonstrated by their continuing participation (Brinkman, 2013). I was still able to get input

on how my research findings would be appreciated, as well as if the method I wanted to

investigate had both academic rigor and would be valued by the company each responder

represented. This enabled me to concentrate my thoughts. Proving that the challenges I was

having were related to my poor interpersonal skills and lack of preparation rather than more

fundamental flaws with the research's approach (Kumar, 2014).

I wanted to make sure that I gathered thorough qualitative data and perspectives from

respondents in order to provide a completely substantiated and balanced dissertation (Brinkman,

2013). Given the difficulties I had encountered, this left me with only two options: either

improve my interviewing skills or completely modify the direction and tone of my dissertation to

focus solely on secondary data analysis and presentation (Kumar, 2014). Given the input I had

received from my academic support team and responders (as well as the potential for personal

growth), I concluded that it would be reasonable to keep my dissertation on track while working

to build and enhance my interviewing abilities (Bassot, 2016). A thorough examination of my

reflective diary revealed more evidence to support this strategy, since I had previously

recognized the need to enhance my interpersonal skills in comparable situations (Jarvis, 2012). I

utilized my academic course to find and engage with others who had been in similar situations in

order to acquire a better knowledge of how they dealt with the obstacles, their thoughts and

anxieties, and how they prepared for their events (Cottrell, 2011). Considering my learning

styles, I knew I'd need a lot of help in this area if I wanted to improve my grades, so I set out to

build a 'community of practice' that could give me with the resources I needed (Honey &

Mumford, 2000, Lave & Wenger, 1998).

Concluding remarks

While reflecting on my thesis-writing experience, I realized that, for the most part, I loved it. I

am the sort of person that enjoys learning and is always looking for new methods to further my

knowledge both inside and outside of the academic environment. I'm especially interested in
learning about subjects related to my degree and potential job in the nonprofit sector, which is

why I applied for this position.

As a result, I went into this procedure with high hopes for my thesis on a topic of my choosing.

Though I had no clue regarding how employees perceive extrinsic and inherent incentives and

how this perspective influences motivational factors at first, after spending a semester studying

and writing about them, I can now say that I know more about regarding how employees

perceive extrinsic and inherent incentives and how this perspective influences motivational

factors than I ever could have imagined. I have gained a greater understanding of social

entrepreneurship as a movement, and I am certain that I can use this knowledge to my work with

NGOs and for-profit enterprises equally.