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Jo VanEvery

You are here: Home / Archives for Writing / Self-care

Developing a Practice: Self-care

Self-care is not a luxury. Self-care is the foundation of everything else you do. You need sleep, good food, exercise, love, nature, etc. We could debate Cartesian dualism all day but you have a body and it needs to be looked after or you can't do anything with your mind.

My own personal photo of our beach picnic location on the pebbled shore of Lake Ontario at Presqu’île Provincial Park

Making travel less stressful

Posted on December 18, 2024 by Jo VanEvery

Jo VanEvery, Academic Career Guide · Making Travel Less Stressful This post was written just after returning from a fall trip back to Canada, to see friends and care for loved ones. We realised that the thoughts I was having about travel might help you too… I (Jo) have just got back from my holiday. […]

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Imperfect notes for perfectionists

Posted on November 20, 2024 by Jeanette Hannaford

Jo VanEvery, Academic Career Guide · Imperfect notes for perfectionists One of the Academic Writing Studio team told me about a great book they’d read that they thought might be helpful for many of our people. Jeanette has been part of the team for a long time. Perfectionism is something many academics struggle with. You […]

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A photo of a dark living room with only a small square of low sunlight illuminating the wall above a well-worn sofa.

Burnout – A personal experience

Posted on July 12, 2024 by Myriam Houssay-Holzschuch

This post is a different format than usual. Typically I write something and then record an audio version. However, when I invited Myriam Houssay-Holzschuch to share something about her experience of burnout, she preferred an interview. The text is an edited transcript of the interview. The audio has also been edited. Myriam and I talked […]

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A photo of a person sat in a hammock next to a lake.

You can get better at resting

Posted on May 10, 2024 by Jo VanEvery

Jo VanEvery, Academic Career Guide · You can get better at resting As I return from a week of annual leave, I have a few thoughts on rest I’d like to share. I talk about rest a lot, not just because it’s necessary but also because it is objectively difficult. I hope these musings help. […]

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A plain notebook open to reveal the word December handpainted in black paint, along with decorative red and green foliage around the edges of the page. The notebook is on a cosy bed surrounded by fairy lights.

Making December less overwhelming

Posted on November 29, 2023 by Jo VanEvery

Jo VanEvery, Academic Career Guide · Making December less overwhelming I’m publishing this at the beginning of December. It will be shared alongside the regular monthly review and planning prompts in my newsletter. The prompts talk more about reviewing and planning your writing. You can access those here. Planning December is different from other months […]

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A photo of a person's silhouette stood against the full wall background of electronic blue and green dots and lines that look like computer code or music editing software from afar.

Autism & Imposter Syndrome

Posted on November 1, 2023 by Daniel Sohege

A note from Jo: On 28 October 2023 Daniel Sohege posted a thread on Bluesky and Twitter about what they call “Autistic Imposter Syndrome”. I recognized much of what they described from conversations with an autistic friend. They kindly agreed to have me turn it into a guest post here. I’ve kept their name for […]

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A ginger and white cat sleeping on thin blue and white striped bedding with light streaming in from the side.

Resting when you can’t stop working completely

Posted on September 1, 2023 by Jo VanEvery

Jo VanEvery, Academic Career Guide · Resting when you can’t stop working completely I seem to be having a lot of conversations about rest lately. It came up in Office Hours in the Academic Writing Studio. It’s come up in more than one Guide for the Journey session. If you are tired, you need to […]

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A person lies on a white bed viewed upside down with both their hands covering their face in tiredness and despair.

Two questions to help you avoid burnout

Posted on September 21, 2022 by Jo VanEvery

Jo VanEvery, Academic Career Guide · 2 questions to help you avoid burnout During the early stages of the Covid pandemic, I recommended what I thought were probably temporary emergency measures. Not even a year into the pandemic I was asking “Are things getting worse? Or is dystopia the new normal?”  In the face of […]

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black and white photo of a person crossing both hands over each other in a stopping gesture with palms facing outwards to the camera and covering the person's face

Burnout is real!

Posted on March 23, 2022 by Jo VanEvery

Jo VanEvery, Academic Career Guide · Burnout is real! As the Covid19 pandemic and related adjustments extended over months and years, conversations about burnout seemed to increase. The additional pressure of the pandemic seems to have pushed several people over the edge. A client who was already working with me to move a book project […]

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A completely dark room with only a human eye visible in a beam of yellow light projected onto their face. They are looking off into the distant right hand side in thoughtful expression.

Start By Noticing

Posted on October 20, 2021 by Jo VanEvery

Jo VanEvery, Academic Career Guide · Managing Energy: Start by Noticing An important element of my approach to planning is that, instead of focusing on all the things you may need to fit into your plans, I focus on the concept of managing your time and energy. Noticing the changes in your energy can be […]

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A white cup full of tea and saucer sits next to an open ring-bound notebook with a silver pen on top. Lay across the notebook is some pink flower cuttings with stems and leaves.

Spotlight On: Writing & Resting

Posted on July 16, 2021 by Jo VanEvery

Jo VanEvery, Academic Career Guide · Spotlight On: Writing & Resting One of the main challenges you face in the summer is juggling writing and rest. The first step is to resist the urge to Write All The Things!. I’ve used a hiking metaphor to explain how your summer writing fits with the writing you […]

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A blue and white striped picnic blanket sits on a white sandy beach with a straw hat, an open book, a disposable film camera, a pair of sunglasses, a mustard yellow cardigan, a small satsuma and a canned beverage in a cooler displayed on top.

How to take a vacation

Posted on June 9, 2021 by Jo VanEvery

Jo VanEvery, Academic Career Guide · How to take a vacation Just because your work doesn’t always look like work, doesn’t mean you don’t get to take a real vacation. You already deserve this vacation; it’s not a reward for achieving summer goals. In fact, not only do you deserve a vacation, you need a […]

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