I really need to share this post by Helen Kara with you. She makes some excellent points that fit very well with my approach to planning. And she made me realise something: There is a big difference between project planning and workload planning. What I focus on here most of the time is workload planning, […]
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Lies you’ve been told about loving your work
Jo VanEvery, Academic Career Guide · Lies you’ve been told about loving your work Your employer exploits the fact that you love your work (or aspects of it) to avoid addressing serious workload pressures, to avoid the cost of appropriate staffing levels, to justifying paying you less, and to avoid addressing the mental health issues […]
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Scholarly writing as a collective project to advance knowledge
It saddens and frustrates me that so many scholars lose sight of how meaningful their academic work is (or was) for them in the face of external pressures. Too often the collective process of advancing knowledge has been obscured by competitive pressures that lead to bullying and a distraction from the work itself to focus […]
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The importance of your vision.
Jo VanEvery, Academic Career Guide · The importance of your vision One reason I started doing what I’m doing, is that I could see all of these brilliant, interesting people not really enjoying their academic jobs. For various reasons you were discouraged, frustrated, or just plain overworked. As I’ve worked with clients, I have noticed […]
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Unpacking “busy”: the importance of being proactive instead of reactive
Jo VanEvery, Academic Career Guide · Unpacking Busy: the importance of being proactive vs reactive In a conversation with a long-term client recently I had an Aha! moment. Every one of my clients is busy. Working with me, doesn’t necessarily make you less busy. Working with me can make you feel less stressed and make […]
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Don’t do your best!
Jo VanEvery, Academic Career Guide · Don’t Do Your Best! You know all about perfectionism and why it isn’t equivalent to “striving for excellence” but is actually a psychological problem that seriously hampers your work. (If you don’t, read the pieces linked here, and maybe talk to a mental health professional.) But I bet you […]
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What an academic career looks like
There are a lot of different ways to have an academic career. Your academic career is affected by both your own values and desires, and by forces beyond your control. Although a lot of academic career advice suggests that there is a clear path to success, there are lots of reasons you may not end […]
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Saying no, FOMO, and being strategic about research
Jo VanEvery, Academic Career Guide · Saying no, FOMO, and being strategic about research I saw a short thread on Twitter reflecting on taking advice to say no a lot. Before starting my lectureship, my mentors told me very clearly to say no to as many things as possible (except unmissable opportunities). It has been […]
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Risking doing the work you find meaningful
A longstanding imaginary-friend-on-the-Internet, who now runs a very successful online business, once said that something I’d said to him years ago had been pivotal to his success. I had no idea what he was talking about. Apparently, back when we were both still trying to figure out what and how to do our things, I […]
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Do you suffer from Imposter Syndrome?
Jo VanEvery, Academic Career Guide · Do you suffer from imposter syndrome? That’s one of those faux-medical terms for a Very Real Thing. You feel like you don’t really belong, you aren’t really qualified, and at any moment someone is going to find out and your whole life will come crashing down. It’s related to perfectionism […]
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Be an amateur.
Jo VanEvery, Academic Career Guide · Be an amateur I’ve been thinking about the term amateur. I’m particularly drawn to the origin — “French, from Italian amatore from Latin amator lover”. I note that prior to the 19th century, usage is merely: “A person who is fond of something; a person who has a taste […]
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Process vs Product
I have an ambivalent relationship with goals. I know they are important but I find setting specific goals with an output and a deadline stalls my work rather than motivating it. I see that a lot of you struggle with similar issues in your writing. This post uses a long analogy to my own process […]
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