Join us in Conquering Your Qualitative Research Methods!

Hello Qualitative Mind,

If you have taken a course with me, watched one my Facebook™ lives and/or read a few Quali Q blog posts, you’ll know I often encourage personal reflection, reflexivity and writing in qualitative research. What you might not be fully aware of is how much those practices are also part of my life as a female entrepreneur. 

When I think about what has helped me to overcome entrepreneurial hurdles and succeed, I think of a few key things, and one of them has been the mentorship I’ve received from Cathy Mazak. Through Cathy, I have learned so much about the culture of academia, the importance of systems and the strength found in community. The invitation I am extending to you today is HIGHLY inspired by her programs and her community {I curated a list of her podcast episodes that speak about this at the end of the blog post for you}. I hope that, if you’re a qualitative researcher, you’ll feel inclined and inspired to join me as we conquer your qualitative research methods!

I want to be transparent with you, so I’ll tell you right now that this blog post will likely feel more like an invitation (or call to action) than anything else. But, let me tell you something- you don’t want to miss this invitation! 

In addition to learning from others (like Cathy), Jess and I are always trying to apply what we learn from our Quali Q community, and what we’re sharing today is a direct result of that. The last Qualitative Research Blueprint cohort (March 2021) told us, loud and clear, that the thing they most appreciated about QRB was the community of practice, the time we had for weekly meetings and discussions, and the sounding board they found in one another. We weren’t surprised about these findings, but we did feel it necessary to do something in response to them.

That’s how the idea of “Conquering Your Qualitative Research Methods” came about. “Conquering Your Qualitative Research Methods” is a week dedicated to writing a pivotal section of any qualitative proposal, thesis or manuscript: your METHODS.

At first, I thought about calling it a “5-day write your methods challenge”, but I sincerely believe it wouldn’t capture what we’re trying to accomplish starting on Monday June 21st, 2021. We want to foster a community of researchers who want to effectively write their qualitative methods section for whatever purpose they need it (e.g., proposal, manuscript, conference abstract, poster, etc.). If you’re ready (or in immediate need) to write your qualitative methods, I want you to join us! Throughout next week, I’ll be guiding you with prompts that will help you to write your qualitative methods section in as little as 30 minutes a day. Then, on Friday we’ll come together as a community to answer your questions, talk to one another, and add more details to your methods sections.

“But Maira, how exactly will this work?”

When you sign up for “Conquering Your Qualitative Research Methods” here, you’ll receive a video where I explain to you exactly how the week will work. Basically, on each day (Monday through Friday) you’ll receive an email from us with a short (5-minute) video where I’ll be laying out the guiding posts for your writing on that day.

What you need to do after watching the video is set aside 25 minutes of UNINTERRUPTED time to write your own qualitative methods. I assure you that the prompts for your writing will be so nicely laid out that you’ll have no problems following my lead and, most importantly, accomplishing your writing goal. 

If you’re wondering what each day has in store for you, I can give you a sneak peek…

Day 1: Methodology

Day 2: Research Setting

Day 3: Sampling

Day 4: Data Collection

Day 5: Data Analysis + LIVE Workshop (2pm MST)

Conquering Your Qualitative Research Methods is meant to be empowering and effective (with a healthy dose of fun). I can’t promise you’ll never again have to look at your methods section, however, I can promise that there is immense clarity in naming concepts, approaches and processes that have guided/will guide your qualitative research. 

I look forward to having you join the Quali Q community as we conquer a super relevant piece of your qualitative research (aka methods). 

See you next week (hopefully with pages in hand, filled with wonderful words about your qualitative methods)!

Talk soon,

Maira

P.S. Curated episodes from Academic Womxn Amplified 

Episode 73 – Accountability vs. Community

Episode 78 - Writing Sprint Breakdown

Episode 72 - The Radical Act of Womxn Writing Together

Episode 65 - Making a Date With Your Writing