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You are here: Home / Archives for prioritizing

prioritizing

Some black graffiti on a white brick wall that says "What Now?" in capital letters next to a simplistic neutral face that has a horizontal line for a mouth

Prioritising meaningful work when you are feeling overwhelmed and powerless

Posted on January 23, 2020 by Jo VanEvery

This is a follow up to the post about being an academic in dystopian times in which I encouraged you to : “Double down on the work that is meaningful to you. What makes your teaching meaningful to you? What makes your research meaningful to you? What makes your writing and publishing meaningful to you? How […]

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Writing is NOT a reward for getting your grading done

Posted on April 27, 2016 by Jo VanEvery

Jo VanEvery, Academic Career Guide · Writing is not a reward for getting your grading done Grading is dispiriting at the best of times. There is too much of it to do, to a very tight deadline. And despite the occasional brilliant paper or clear demonstration that students are getting it, there are too many […]

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When priorities and boundaries feel like cutting corners: Grading Edition

Posted on April 16, 2015 by Jo VanEvery Leave a Comment

Jo VanEvery, Academic Career Guide · When priorities and boundaries feel like cutting corners In my Planning classes, I talk about the importance of defining your priorities and setting boundaries. An email from a client reminded me how hard that is in practice. This client was finding it hard to juggle her priorities as the […]

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Setting effective goals

Posted on December 8, 2014 by Jo VanEvery Leave a Comment

My approach to planning is very process focused. I encourage you to make time to do the important work and to notice how your projects are moving forward. I do this because what I see happening when people set goals increases stress, leads to overwork, and doesn’t actually support their best work. Things like: negative self-talk […]

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A close-up photo of a silver face wristwatch where 10, 11 and 12 are visible as well as the smaller circle for the second hand.

Is “number of hours” the right measure?

Posted on March 1, 2012 by Jo VanEvery 1 Comment

Recently a client asked me to help her figure out how to work less. She is frustrated by long hours, working weekends, and so on. She figures at this stage of her career, she should be able to have a better balance. As we worked together, it became clear to me that the number of […]

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Work-Life Balance in academic careers

Posted on October 16, 2011 by Jo VanEvery Leave a Comment

I read a thought provoking piece on Work-Life Balance recently. Thinking about this in relation to academic careers, I realize that the choice you face is actually more complex. And that that complexity might make it easier to address the problem (if there is one).

The issue for you might not be a work-life balance issue, it might be a work-work balance issue.

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Learning to say “no”

Posted on August 10, 2010 by Jo VanEvery 2 Comments

I know that academic workloads can be nuts. I’ve been an academic.

I also know that as an academic you have considerably more control over your work than many other professionals.

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