Jo VanEvery, Academic Career Guide · Being an academic in dystopian times: valuing your academic work As I write this, there has been an escalation of white supremacist activity in the US, and the generally difficult political climate in both the US and the UK has not really become less difficult than when I wrote […]
Read More »Planning, or Juggling 101
My approach to planning focuses on 3 key elements: Priorities, Boundaries, Slack. I have also elaborated these in my book The Principles of Juggling, illustrated by Amy Crook.
If you have come here because you are overwhelmed start with the Emergency Planning Technique. Once you've got things calmed down, you can then consider making a plan to keep things from getting out of control.
Early morning writing
The benefits of early morning writing can often seem like preachy, unattainable, eye-roll inducing positivity. But I have brought together some real examples of this life-changing process for your writing, just to give that eye-roll some evidence first… Rachael Herron has written eloquently about how crazy the idea of early morning writing sounds and how […]
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Being an academic in dystopian times: Making time for activism
Jo VanEvery, Academic Career Guide · Being an academic in dystopian times: making time for activism Since the election and inauguration of the 45th President of the United States there has been a surge of political activity. Many of my clients and the academics I follow on social media are posting more about the political […]
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Balancing writing and student demands
Recently someone in the Academic Writing Studio asked me for advice about the conflict she is feeling between working on her own writing and writing student reference letters, reviewing thesis proposals, and whatnot. This is something everyone struggles with. Your writing isn’t more important than your students. But nor are your students more important than your […]
Read More »You get a lot done
Your to-do list is long. It never seems to get any shorter does it? And many of the things on your list are long term projects with lots of sub-projects and tasks and whatnot. It seems like some of those things have been on your to do list forever. Some people will tell you to […]
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The role of journal editors in long review times
Jo VanEvery, Academic Career Guide · The role of journal editors in long review times This is part of a short series addressing the frustration with how long peer review takes. Other posts in this series include The frustrations of peer review and How you, as a peer reviewer, can contribute to a better process. […]
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How you, as a peer reviewer, can contribute to a better process
Jo VanEvery, Academic Career Guide · How you, as a peer reviewer, can contribute to a better process This is part of a short series addressing the frustration with how long peer review takes. Other posts in this series include The Frustrations of Peer Review and The Role of Journal Editors in Long Review Times. […]
Read More »Time Management isn’t primarily a technical problem
First published in the Careers Cafe at University Affairs. Republished with permission. Everyone struggles with time management. Everyone. If it were just a matter of accurately estimating how long things would take and then allocating time to do those tasks, it wouldn’t be such a big problem. Perhaps you would be able to make a rational argument […]
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A story from… A Meeting With Your Writing
Jo VanEvery, Academic Career Guide · A Story from A Meeting With Your Writing If you’re a long-time member or someone new researching how you can add some accountability to your writing goals, here is a story from A Meeting With Your Writing – my weekly series of virtual writing groups to help you learn […]
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It’s not too late to adjust your plans
Jo VanEvery, Academic Career Guide · It’s not too late to adjust your plans As I write this I am thinking of one person who has shared her feeling that she’s overcommitted this term, and didn’t manage to get any rest over the break, and is Never Doing This Again. I’m writing it to everyone […]
Read More »Slack: the key to successful plans
Note: This post is not about the messaging app. It’s about slack as in not tightening the rope too much, leaving a buffer or white-space, etc. During late December and early January the number of posts in my Facebook feed about planning grew considerably. And then there were the inevitable cries of frustration that something […]
Read More »End of term chaos
My clients and participants in A Meeting With Your Writing, not to mention various people’s posts on social media, remind me that there is such a thing as End of Term Chaos. Just like Beginning of Term Chaos, this is temporary. It will pass. Is this you? Are you overwhelmed? Tired? Having difficulty focusing? Were you […]
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