Here's a reminder of the standard format for check-ins:
1. comment on the week's topic, when there is one
2. report your progress against last week's goals
3. analysis (optional): analyse what happened, what went well, what came up to derail things, note what you learnt/want to change, ask any questions of the rest of the group if you want some tips or suggestions
4. planning (optional): something about the coming week: what the priorities are, what issues are going to present challenges, what the framework for your goal-setting is
5. goals for the next week (or multi-week period until your next check-in)
Last week's goals:
allan wilson
(possible late check-in)
1. Exercise four times
2. encourage myself toward goal one
3. Make a list of tasks for CR
Amstr
1) write 3 days
2) rough drafts of 2 job apps
3) gather info for letters of rec; email Kind Advisor
4) exercise 3x
Contingent Cassandra
1) Take at least one early-morning walk, plus one other exercise activity that could form part of daily options for the summer (walk at another time, a swim).
2) Make progress on household chaos-reduction to the extent it can be combined with packing for trip/organizing for return & start of summer session (just packing for the trip & being ready for the start of the summer session would be enough).
3) some family/friend connection/communication (probably mostly beginning the process of planning get-togethers for after I get back; there are also 2 sets of birthday gifts to buy/send)
4) more planning if there's time/energy
Daisy
1) Awkward talk with ex-supervisor - the "either read and comment on two papers you've had for 6 months right away, or give me permission to submit without you" talk. Not looking forward to that!
2) Do all accounting from the last term, and sort out summer student contracts
3) Read a new paper every day
4) Finish revisions for lingering old paper (L2)
5) Sort out all field gear
6) Try not to freak out about leaving for field work in two weeks, way sooner than I thought!
Elizabeth
1) Finish compiling the articles I need to read for the literature review.
2) Read and take notes on one article.
3) Walk for half an hour 5 times.
GEW
1) exercise 2-3 times
2) makes plans, establish strategies for productivity
3) outline thesis intro
6) plan and shop for daughter's b-day party
humming42
1) finish Proposal Em and send to Colleague
2) set task list for Fem Proposal
3) sweep up all teaching-related tasks from spring semester
4) move bookcase in home office and bring in books from the garage
iwantzcatbocl
1. Make outline for June
2. Do fieldwork
3. Write some on Tuesday and Sunday (at least two hours).
4. finish some admin
5. try to be patient with grad students
JaneB
1) write a one-page research idea statement
2) go through my notes from the workshop and send some follow-up emails
3) go to bed before midnight
4) get some exercise at least three days
5) spend 10 minutes a day on something decluttering or not-desperately-urgent housework related
Karenh
(goals from Week 1, since I don't think I see a Week 1 check-in, though I do see some comments; apologies if I missed your Week 2 goals, Karen)
1) pick up dropped admin to do list and knock off a couple of items (P1)
2) organise all conference papers into one folder (P2)
3) physio exercises x4 and set a bed-time alarm every evening
kjhaxton
(next check-in will probably be week 3)
1. Finish as much marking as possible, what is not done by home time Thursday will be done on Wednesday.
2. continue the list making and planning habits,
3. start to write a small amount each day.
Let's Do This
(condensed; apologies for anything lost in the process) (goals from Week 1, since I don't think I see a Week 1 check-in, though I do see some comments; apologies if I missed your Week 2 goals, Karen)
1) pick up dropped admin to do list and knock off a couple of items (P1)
2) organise all conference papers into one folder (P2)
3) physio exercises x4 and set a bed-time alarm every evening
kjhaxton
(next check-in will probably be week 3)
1. Finish as much marking as possible, what is not done by home time Thursday will be done on Wednesday.
2. continue the list making and planning habits,
3. start to write a small amount each day.
Let's Do This
1. finish the article. Sub-goals: Revise all existing prose. Work in survey results. Work in remaining scholarship. Re-format into Chicago Style (UGH).
2. "read Book 1 thus far" and "read Book 2 thus far," "if I have time."
3. Support my daughter as she heads back into the gym (she's a gymnast).
4. Keep up with the house.
5. Play with the baby! Enjoy his little sounds and faces and hugs. :)
Matilda
1) again, to write a research report for the grant I got.
2) again, to write (start to work) on the chapter 1 of the book.
3) to exercise for 5 minutes everyday, when I have time.
4) to have less sweets.
Mercy
a. read and comment on 2 MA thesis projects, and meet w/students
b. finish grading for WS class
c. read for HA paper: 3 poms/day on 3 days/week
d. finish not one, but two, time-sensitive admin tasks
e. take a lunch walk on 3 days/week
Susan
1. Actually move text into my new outline, and begin to write the connecting pieces
2. Make reading/ILL list
3. Email potential volume contributors
4. Email presses re. my book and essays
5. Vacation planning (JaneB, I will email you!)
I should have added a goal: check in on time! I think this might be a first for me :)
ReplyDeleteLast week's goals:
1) Awkward talk with ex-supervisor - DONE - promised me a paper on Monday - not holding my breath that this will happen, but for now I'll pretend it helped!
2) Do all accounting from the last term, and sort out summer student contracts DONE
3) Read a new paper every day DONE
4) Finish revisions for lingering old paper (L2) Figures DONE, text NEEDS MORE
5) Sort out all field gear NOT
6) Try not to freak out about leaving for field work in two weeks, way sooner than I thought! MILD panic only, taking it as a win.
Not a bad week actually, got a lot of stuff sorted out and I'm in good shape to go away. I'm really enjoying the "new-paper-a-day" reading project. It is making a really big difference to my general disposition towards work, and it makes every day feel like science. I'm reading mostly stuff related to my research, but also branching out into things that just look interesting, or catch my attention, or are by people I respect even if not directly related to work.
Field work is coming soon, yay!!!!
Next week's goals:
1) Finish text edits on lingering paper L2
2) Send L2 to helpful readers
2) Find all field gear, and buy anything needed - do not leave until next weekend!
3) Set up research students to work without me
4) Keep up reading project
Nice progress, Daisy! mmm, I am thinking of starting 'new-paper-a-day' reading project myself....
DeleteI continue to be impressed with the "new-paper-a-day"project! I'm rather temted, like Matilda, to start my own, but am just curious how long it takes you to write a paper/day? I'm estimating it would easily be 4 to 6 poms (2 to 3 hours) for me, which I really don't have--so I'm thinking of setting a smaller goal for me, like 1 section of a paper per day, to better match the time I'd like to spend on this (1 to 2 poms)
DeleteI generally spend about 30 to 60 minutes on the reading project. Shorter for some things, much longer on the math-heavy modelling things, many of which end up in my actual research reading. I'm not counting my research reading in this, because that generally involves notes, queries, more interactions with data etc. So I'm really trying to focus on this project as an "expand my horizons" kind of thing, like going to the library and picking one random book from each aisle or reading something you wouldn't normally pick up :)
DeleteYour post was legit inspiring to read because of the phrase "I'm actually enjoying ..." May we all be able to say that next week! :)
DeleteThat quote should have been "I'm really enjoying ..."
DeleteHello,
ReplyDelete1.
I really enjoyed reading how friends here have nice ideas on lists. There are so many ways of listing things!
2.last goals:
1) again, to write a research report for the grant I got. - Ok, done. Anyway, I had to finish it.
2) again, to write (start to work) on the chapter 1 of the book. - Well, I just started, re-read some part of my draft and re-plan some part.
3) to exercise for 5 minutes everyday, when I have time. - Not good. Just done only 2 days.
4) to have less sweets. - I seem to have had more quantity as snacks, though less sweets.
3:analysis:
I have a draft of Chapter 1, but it needs drastic revision, which is a daunting task. The chapter, however, I like maybe the most among any other parts of the book, and I remember the interests and excitement when I was working on the topic (it is based on my old thesis, by the way). Maybe I can start from the slight revision - changing words and expressions, adding more explanation and so on- then, if necessary, to actual fundamental revision, changing the structure, for example. I am again turning to Belcher’s book.
4:planning:
I had put ‘5-minute-exercise’ post-it on the desk, but it did not work as I expected. Sigh. I will replace it on my PC so that I cannot help looking it when I work.
5:next goals:
1) to make a plan of the revision of Chapter 1.
2) to read two important articles.
3) to exercise for 5 minutes when I have time.
4) to have less sweets, less snacks at night.
Like you I was inspired with the 1-new-article-per-day program, but thinking it would be too much for me (maybe a disciplinary issue). So I like your goal of 2 articles/week (am assuming these are also new?) and planning it as my own goal too--it will still add up to a lot of new articles read over the course of the Summer!
DeleteApologies for going AWOL last week - we turned into the House of Plague, then may partner was away at a conference, essay deadline imminent etc etc... So I'm looking back over two very unproductive TLQ weeks here.
ReplyDeleteLast week's goals:
1. P1 Admin - nope, nothing
2. P2 Looking through old conference papers to organise and work out which to focus on revising - Did work out that I will be focusing on the embodied knowledge paper through being asked to join a writing group that will fit with this paper best. So call that the universe deciding for me.
3. Bed alarm clock - one upside of illness was that I went to bed at reasonable hours.
4. Physio exercises 4 x week - only 1 x week. Realised this is a habit cued by bedtime routine and when that goes out, exercises go out.
Analysis/Planning.
I really need to stop planning my weeks as though everything will run smoothly and that I will be super-efficient at all times because those things never happen. So being realistic about next week, no classes mean I have time freed up from teaching - but I do have a student day trip to chaperone, a Masters student needing a lot of help as they race a deadline, and a bit of work to do for my volunteer organisation. Will try scheduling TLQ time in the calendar so it can't fall out altogether.
Goals:
1. P1 Admin list and as many items as can be knock off in a hour.
2. P2 Make a list of possible journals that Embodied paper could find a home in, 15 min writing 3x week on it.
3. Bed alarm clock continue
4. Try physio exercise in office 4 x week
Karenh
Hope everyone is feeling better at the House of Plague!
DeleteWelcome back! Three times 15 minutes on writing seems like a great goal: I tend to feel a lot less intimidated by writing that way (in very small blocks of time)
DeleteGlad you're back! Observing how routines (or lack thereof) cue each other is, I think, a useful exercise. I like to have several different possible ways of working something I want to do (e.g. exercise) into the day, so I've got several options that feel familiar/habitual. Not that that actually guarantees I *do* exercise, but at least there are several possibilities for getting back into a routine (and thinking "oh, yes, I used to do this, and actually enjoyed it/felt good as a result. Why did I stop again" -- and of course the answer is often that something else changed, and disrupted the routine, so it's not a cure-all).
DeleteI am totally with you on needing to avoid planning as if all will go smoothly. Maybe I need to schedule 30-60 minutes per day for "crap I wasn't expecting to have to do."
Delete"I really need to stop planning my weeks as though everything will run smoothly and that I will be super-efficient at all times because those things never happen." My goodness, are you me? I know that a (wo)man's reach will exceed her grasp, etc. etc., but I cannot for the life of me stop the pollyanna planning. I love GEW's idea to build slush time into each day. She says 30-60 minutes ... I feel like I need two hours! :)
DeleteI hope the conference is going well. C.C.! I’ve been following several conferences on twitter so far this summer, feeling a little wistful for the good intellectual exchange that can happen in those spaces. Yet I am also grateful for the slow time, although I am definitely slower than I would like. Read: laziness rules the day. Some progress made nonetheless.
ReplyDeleteLast week
1) finish Proposal Em and send to Colleague: I finished the proposal and emailed Colleague, who is packing up her house to move across the country. I haven’t heard back from her, and will probably go forward without her input.
2) set task list for Fem Proposal: thought about it, didn’t get to it.
3) sweep up all teaching-related tasks from spring semester: some progress and more to do.
4) move bookcase in home office and bring in books from the garage: Moved the bookcase but didn’t bring the books in.
Analysis
It’s been very interesting to see that things I put off until the semester break have been relatively easy tasks, making me wonder why I didn’t tend to them before. I would have been so much happier if I had shredded that stack of papers in my office instead of glaring at them every day. Summer is about trying to find balance, and hoping I can sustain it into the coming academic year.
This week
1) FInish Em Proposal and send off.
2) Finish teaching-related task from spring.
3) Bring in books from the garage.
4) Begin 10 minute mindfulness pledge (do some mindfulness activity for ten minutes every day).
Wishing everyone a wonderful week ahead.
I find that too, that tasks I put off (and was intimidated by) during the semester aren't all that hard once I actually do them. Thanks for the reminder, and wishing you a new semester where you can remember this too!
DeleteThanks, humming42! It went pretty well (definitely worth attending), though it was pretty all-absorbing, especially when you take into consideration the fact that I was doing class prep in most of my "off" hours.
DeleteI, too, can relate to the experience of finding many tasks suddenly manageable when I'm not overwhelmed by the press of the semester. Energy/mental space really is as much an issue as time, at least for me.
Yes, I'm always amazed by how little time some dreaded tasks eventually take. Sometimes I think this is because time helps us (and others) sort out what really matters. Like when you ignore an email for a day or two and by the time you get to it, the problem has disappeared! I think tasks sometimes feel bigger than they are when they're new and occupying our brains, and maybe by the time we get to them, we've unconsciously done a lot of the work of accomplishing them. But the problem is that, in the meantime, they sit in our to-do lists, adding stress to our lives. Not sure what the solution is.
Deletegoals & progress:
ReplyDelete1) write a one-page research idea statement yes
2) go through my notes from the workshop and send some follow-up emails no, but did send a couple of emails
3) go to bed before midnight about 2 days
4) get some exercise at least three days 2 days
5) spend 10 minutes a day on something decluttering or not-desperately-urgent housework related 2 days
analysis: Two days seems to be a pattern - but they weren't the same two days. I just don't seem to be in the mood for self care. I hate seasonal allergies... and am firmly blaming them even when it's mostly me being idle rather than them playing up... But I'm sad and tired and grumpy and fed up with all the nonsense at work and the grading I have to do and just with everything. I would "like" (" " because I don't like anything right now, but this is what I am most drawn to doing) to sleep, read and eat bonbons for a week, and NOTHING ELSE, whilst at the same time some cleaning elves fixed my house and office, and my boss had a leadership-skills-transplant, and the university decided to start giving us the resources and the appreciation we need to do our job. Whilst I'm wishing, I'll have world peace, and a pony. Just maaaaybe it's heading for That Time Of The Month, and I maaaaay have eaten too much processed wheat-type deliciousness yesterday, both of which tend to make me extra "I hate everything". And my eyes itch which is a particular burden for an obligate contact-lens wearer (glasses do not fix my particular vision problem and I can't get below the top two lines of the eye chart, tell the colour of my cat, drive, avoid collisions with standard objects such as doors and chairs reliably without my lenses. But I CAN read my back-lit Kindle, on the largest text setting. This is ACE, but not so good at helping me go to sleep before midnight, as the 'can't see to read' effect is removed).
cont.
DeleteNext week is an office-rich week (::pout::) - I should go in tomorrow for a compulsory "all faculty" meeting which will be a consultation session about the New Strategic Vision - it's 1 hour long, held in a 750 seat lecture hall, and I really doubt there will be much consultation, and what there is will lack meaning. So I may NOT go in (rebellion!!). I need to go in on Tuesday (departmental meeting about new research structure where my attendance will be politically smart and possibly necessary too, meetings with students, marks due, late work to collect), Wednesday (a different meeting about something else urgent where again my presence is politically desirable, and more student meetings, and marked late work needs to be delivered) and Friday (meeting with PDF and an external visiting grad student about skills training stuff). So skipping Monday seems a sane option... But given all that going onto campus, with multiple concomittant stressors, my goals for the week will be largely framed by Being Nice to Me and getting the necessary cleared.
goals:
1) complete all marking leftovers from the semester [yes, I am on study leave. Yes, I still had to advise students - 13 project students finishing up work, 10 planning for next year, 8 tutorial advisees - and grade - 11 drafts of extended projects for formative feedback, 14 extended projects (2 at 4000 words, 6 at 10,000 words and 6 at 18,000 words), 2 essays, 10 research plan outlines, 10 research plans. All of this should have arrived in two discrete chunks, but thanks to various extensions etc. I have had grading obligations arriving since 25th April and the last lot should have gone in last Thursday... all with different 'return to the office' dates...). but I should be able to get it ALL DONE this week, bar maybe some Other People stuff. Sigh. Other people.
2) check out a technical problem with a dataset in the lab, and correct the spreadsheet and analyses as necessary
3) Go through the notes from the workshop and email as necessary, put in workshop expenses claim
4) keep a mood and self-care diary, to collect data - this is a good week to do that as it's 'semester like', probably the last semester-like week of the academic year, and this might give me some ideas about how to work on things this summer. Data is always nice, right?
5) work through the comments on Crunchier and if time Crunchier's Little Brother
6) bed before midnight! (I've been setting a bed time alarm, but it tends to act as a 'stop working, begin internet noodling, then phone noodling, then random wandering around the house, then go to bed with a book, then read 'just another page' for far too long. Or play phone games, and give myself shoulder blade cramp which keeps me awake. So maybe I need to set a series of 'stop doing THAT' and 'stop doing THAT' alarms...)
Oh, sympathy on all the institutional bullshit and the seasonal allergies - do antihistamines make any difference?
DeleteFor the going to bed futz around (which I am totally guilty of) what about a devices down and in chargers alarm that can turn into a bedtime ritual?
Hope the Being Nice to Self keeps up with the week.
Karenh
Yes, sympathy and "I totally hear you" on the institutional stuff. What would happen if you just didn't go? It really doesn't sounds useful at all.
DeleteFor the Monday thing, nothing really would happen, so I didn't go! Yay, rebellion...
DeleteFor Tuesday and Wednesday: these are sub-departmental level things and I want to be seen to be cooperative (Incoming takes this very seriously and I feel like he sees me as reactionary and opposed to all of his ideas, so not attending is likely to be seen as sulking for the Tuesday event, although I still don't agree with the plans). The Wednesday one might actually be of some use to me, in a grant-applying sense. And I need to meet those undergraduate students sometime, so...
If I had gone to the other side of the work for my study leave, I wouldn't be expected to do these things. As I am HERE, and still visibly active in marking and doing two of my administrative roles, I think my absence would be seen negatively... Sometimes I think I overthink stuff like this, then I just follow my instincts, and then quite often someone gets mad/snarky/grumpy with me and I realise they WERE thinking what I thought but thought was an overthought, if that makes ANY sense at all. Basically, I don't trust my instincts on this stuff because Incoming and a couple of other more senior people do not react like I do to things and have different agendas, so I need to actually think about what THEY want not what I want and balance those things out.
Thanks for the empathy!
DeleteI am absurdly over-reactive to anti-histamines - they are brilliant if I have a full-on reaction to an insect bite or have just been in a haymeadow so my eyes are swelling shut, but even then they are a bit zombifying (even the over the counter, so called non drowsy ones). But if I just take one to deal with the day to day, I become very sleepy and dpoed up - and as my anxiety meds have that effect already, double-dopey is probably worse than itchy. Probably.
Hmmm, yeah, maybe if I think of the alarm as a 'do some crochet' alarm rather than a 'go to bed now!' alarm it will work better? Defeating the inner toddler, one trick at a time...
I like the data-gathering idea. Data is, indeed, always good, and stepping back and looking at the situation as a potentially-solvable (or at least improvable) problem sounds like it might be therapeutic, even if it doesn't result in the/a perfect solution.
DeleteI also like the idea of crocheting as a bedtime activity. Also, I'm not sure it works for all screens (probably yes for phones but I'm not sure for e-readers), but I have a little program called f.lux on my computer that shifts the color of the screen away from blue light at sundown (which is, admittedly, pretty late in your parts at this time of year). It doesn't get one off the screen entirely (witness the fact that I'm noodling around past ideal bedtime right now), but it may make the screen-to-bed transition a bit easier, and serves as another reminder that the day is waning.
Yes, I also think the mood and self-care diary sounds good. And also yes to the crochet alarm. Or maybe the reading alarm. I tend to noodle on my phone at bed time (often because I'm setting an alarm on my phone, and I get distracted). I should start setting the alarm earlier in the day/evening. I should probably stop using the phone as my alarm when I'm home, but I use it because it's quiet and doesn't wake my husband too much.
DeleteHope you feel better soon!
DeleteGoals last week:
ReplyDelete1. Actually move text into my new outline, and begin to write the connecting pieces BEGAN
2. Make reading/ILL list - NO
3. Email potential volume contributors - NO
4. Email presses re. my book and essays - NO
5. Vacation planning (JaneB, I will email you!) -Thinking...
Analysis: Well, I did a huge amount of house re-organization, with more to come. This is productive, but not exactly on the to do list. I was finally able to start writing the introduction, but I keep getting stalled writing the paragraph that summarizes a gazillion volumes of research and debate in 250 words because really that's all that is needed right now. But progress is being made. As to the rest, there were a bunch of interruptions, like helping my mother take her cat to the vet, and various other stuff, that kept interrupting life. And discovering that I have made a big financial mistake, which I have to figure out how to fix. But it all feels do-able so I'm not panicking.
Planning for next week: next weekend, I will be going to help my brother care for his 17 month old twins while his wife is off at a memorial service. I'm adding some time at my favorite library on Friday, Saturday, and Monday. But I need to recognize that I've got 9 hours of driving all told, so it will cut into things.
Goals for next week.
1. Get rough draft of introduction finished. This is rough -- it may include places where my paragraph says the equivalent of "Here be dragons", but it should be sketched so that I can fill in the blanks.
2. Write editor about my book
3. Write editor about collection of essays
4. Write potential contributors
5. Make a bunch of phone calls
6. Get ticket for my mother's travel this summer
7. Book B & B where I'll take a few days of real vacation
8. Walk at least 4 days.
I guess I'm on the "a lot of small goals" track this week! But there are currently NO interruptions, so. . .
At least for me, small goals are good: good to realize all the steps that are involved in some bigger goals, easier to estimate how much time the individual tasks might take, and therefore easier to make a realistic schedule for the week. Hope you accomplish all the little tasks of this week!
DeleteI suspect the reorganization will prove useful in the long run, and it sounds like you made *some* writing progress.
DeleteThe good thing about emailing others about projects, I think, is that then they (may) email you back, which makes the project seems a bit more urgent. In fact, I've realized I sometimes put off such email precisely because I'll then have to juggle dealing with the replies with everything else already on my plate. But sometimes that effect can be useful. . . .
Glad the financial mistake isn't too panic-inducing! And you're family is fortunate to have your support. Glad you've got some library time in there and some B & B vacation time in the future!
DeleteI'm with you on the library visit + 9 hours of driving thing ... that's almost exactly what I'm looking forward to this weekend as well. Safe and productive driving and searching to you! And good luck with those twins. :P
DeleteLast week’s goals:
ReplyDelete1) Finish compiling the articles I need to read for the literature review. Yes, I’m pretty sure I have finished with this part.
2) Read and take notes on one article. No, I didn’t get to this goal yet.
3) Walk for half an hour 5 times. Only 4 times, but I’m working on getting up to 5 times.
Analysis: One of our critiques for an article on which I am co-author came back, with a lot of revisions. None of them are bad, but they are a lot of work. It is a much better article, but I spent all my time on doing the edits that were my part of the article. Not wasted time, and it is helpful to learn how to work with a critique, so it’s all good.
Next week’s goals:
1) Read and take notes on one article.
2) Walk for half an hour 5 times.
3) Try out two of the healthy recipes, to see if I can fool the men in the house.
I think working on the R&R (that's what it sounds like?) is an excellent use of your time!
DeleteThe editing definitely sounds like it comes under the unpredictable-but-productive category. If there's a way to plan for the stages of the submission/revision process beyond the very first submission (and bargaining with editors when necessary), I don't know what it is.
DeleteI wish I could say I ever felt like I was finished compiling articles for a lit review. I always feel like I'm must be missing all KINDS of things! I'm getting better though, I think.
DeleteGlad you were able to work through all of the critiques and found the process useful.
Revise & resubmit = great news! Def worth the time spent on it. Good luck finishing up.
Delete1. I liked reading about everyone's list-making strategies!
ReplyDelete2.
a. read and comment on 2 MA thesis projects, and meet w/students DID IT!
b. finish grading for WS class DID IT
c. read for HA paper: 3 poms/day on 3 days/week DID 2 days, but mostly reading, very few new sentences
d. finish not one, but two, time-sensitive admin tasks DID 1 last week, DID 2nd one this morning (which then meant no writing time left)
e. take a lunch walk on 3 days/week DID 1 day only
3. I guess the results for this week are not bad, but not great either. TLQ-ly speaking, my problem is that when things get busy, writing is always the first thing to get dropped from my to-do list, not just because all other things (teaching mostly) have a way of feeling more urgent, but also because being (too) busy makes me anxious and when I get (too) anxious, I get utterly paralyzed about writing. So my ongoing struggle is to not get too stressed out about "everything else" to remain enough calmness of mind to do the pretty intimidating (to me!) work of writing. Ongoing struggle, as I said.
4. Busy week ahead, filling up with pressing & urgent, but not at all writing related stuff. Still, I am scheduled to send a rough draft of HA paper to the members of my Real-Life writing group on Saturday at the very latest,so the big challenge this week will be to carve out enough time for writing so I don't have to back out at the very last minute
5.
a. grade student posters w/colleague (try to be quick about it!)
b. attend talk and take speaker to dinner
c. grade MA res props
d. delegate/ignore/say No to all other tasks that randomly crop up this week
e. find time to work on HA paper each day, w/goal of SFD for writing group
Good luck on your goals this week, you all!
I, too, find it hard to concentrate on any big project when there are a lot of other little things going on (witness my lack of success in getting the summer class prepared before I went off to the conference; I was just too distracted by trying to remember what I needed to pack,and do, and so on, before I left). I do think it helps a bit if one has already gotten into a writing routine, and slipping back into it is a bit of an escape from the million little things competing for one's attention. The trick is getting into the routine in the first place.
DeleteThat's a really good observation about the anxiety of business interacting with anxieties about writing to make it the first task to get dropped. I'm going to think about that more....
DeleteKarenh
Great observation about how and why writing is the first thing to get dropped. I wish it could be a less fraught activity. Every now and then, I find a sweet spot in which it's just another thing I can finish, efficiently and without emotional baggage. And then I lose that sweet spot again. Thank you for so nicely articulating what I'll bet a lot of us feel regularly!
DeleteHi everyone,
ReplyDeleteChiming in late this week. Got derailed by a sleepover party for my daughter this weekend!
Regarding last week's goals:
1. finish the article. Sub-goals: Revise all existing prose. Work in survey results. Work in remaining scholarship. Re-format into Chicago Style (UGH).
**I didn't finish all of these sub-goals, but I'm very close. My research trip to finish up this article is later this week, and I plan to submit it by Friday (it's due June 15th).
2. "read Book 1 thus far" and "read Book 2 thus far," "if I have time."
**Nope!
3. Support my daughter as she heads back into the gym (she's a gymnast).
**Yup, I did this! She was great.
4. Keep up with the house.
**I even did this! Yay! I love to throw a gathering, because it forces me to clean things. Otherwise, I live in relative squalor.
5. Play with the baby! Enjoy his little sounds and faces and hugs. :)
**Definitely accomplished this one!
For next week:
1. Submit the article. This includes sub-goals of reformatting into Chicago style, completing manuscript study at the archive, cleaning up prose, completing work-in of survey results, and sitting on it for a day or two before submitting to ensure that no egregious errors slip through.
2. Re-read books 1 and 2. I plan to do this as a way to take breaks from finishing up the article. I might just have to give up on this one for the week, though.
3. Attend an award ceremony. I'm delighted to report that I won a teaching award! Yay!
4. Welcome my sister to town! She'll be here for two weeks. The plan is that this will not disrupt my writing goals. We shall see. Can't say I'll care too much if her visit does disrupt the goals. :)
Have a great week, everyone! I'll be checking in from the archive next time, so I hope I'll be able to spread archive-inspired sitzfleish to everyone.
Congratulations on the teaching award! Enjoy the ceremony!
DeleteWow! Sounds like you're making great progress on a number of fronts. Enjoy the teaching award ceremony, and the archive.
DeleteYay for the award and for cleaning house and daughter support and babies and for article progress. And for upcoming archive trip and sister visit. All good things!
DeleteThanks, everyone!
DeleteBack from the conference, with my summer class underway, I'm finally actually checking in.
ReplyDeleteGoals for last week:
1) Take at least one early-morning walk, plus one other exercise activity that could form part of daily options for the summer (walk at another time, a swim).
2) Make progress on household chaos-reduction to the extent it can be combined with packing for trip/organizing for return & start of summer session (just packing for the trip & being ready for the start of the summer session would be enough).
3) some family/friend connection/communication (probably mostly beginning the process of planning get-togethers for after I get back; there are also 2 sets of birthday gifts to buy/send)
4) more planning if there's time/energy
Accomplished:
1) no, not at all
2) a bit more chaos-reduction than I expected (in part because I was afraid the person to whom I offered a ride might actually need to come into the apartment at some point, and be shocked at the chaos). The (relative) order has been nice to come home to, and I'm also making progress on another chaos-reduction measure: reading the paper on a tablet rather than taking it in paper form. The class? well, some of the prep occurred while I was at the conference, and I tied up a few loose ends this morning, but it's basically on track.
3) bought/sent the 2 sets of birthday gifts; nothing more.
4) there was no additional time/energy
Goals for this week:
1) get into a more regular exercise habit, especially swimming and walking (preferably both, but at least one, each day)
2) make progress on financial paperwork
3) get in touch w/ friends re: getting together; try to figure out how to stay in touch w/ family members in middle of delicate situation
4) take one load of things to storage; additional chaos-reduction as time/energy allows
I love your list of goals and might just steal it!
DeleteWalking and swimming are such great ways to exercise. I am working on doing both of them more often.
ReplyDeleteAnd congrats on the chaos reduction!
Last week's goals:
ReplyDeleteGEW
1) exercise 2-3 times. YES. I walked at least 3 and did one challenging yoga class)
2) makes plans, establish strategies for productivity. SOMEWHAT. I think this will be an ongoing process. But I got a special notebook for making lists, and I'm going to start adding DONE lists for the PhD work so that I can properly reflect on my work patterns.
3) outline thesis intro. YES. I did this and read several articles.
6) plan and shop for daughter's b-day party. YES. There will be a few more details and errands to manage, but I've done the bulk of it.
This will I had both encouraging and discouraging realizations. The encouraging realization is that I've gotten much faster at reading secondary sources. Since I've gained more expertise in my area, the articles are easier to read, and I don't have to stop to make note of every bibliographic reference because I've already read a lot of them. I also understand the concepts and can skim better. This is great news for reading productivity!
The discouraging realization is that the framework for Chapter 1 of my thesis (which I drafted years ago) does not fit well with the rest of the chapters. So now I need to do a lot of reconsidering and substantive rewriting. This is going to impact my self-imposed deadlines. But I'm hoping I can figure out a good approach, and I've done some outlining.
This week will be interesting. My husband is out of town, and I'm planning for my daughters b-day, but I should still be able to get some significant work done if I don't "noodle around" too much.
This week's goals:
1) Finish prepping for daughter's b-day. (This includes repainting a piano bench I found on the side of the road. I'm going to do it up in fun colors.)
2) Be present for the kids during this "mommy week" while hubby is gone.
3) Each evening, set a schedule for the next day.
4) Exercise 4 times (swim at least once).
5) Finish re-reading primary source.
6) read two articles or book chapters
7) purge boxes of stuff from the cabinets of the bathroom that hubby demoed.
It's kind of an optimistic list ...
Good luck with the optimistic list! I find solo parenting over a longer than usual stretch requires a different rhythm to the days - or at least a different mindset that being present helps with.
DeleteJust like reading secondary sources, radical redrafts can get quicker with experience, and at least now you have a better sense of how Chapter One needs to fit with the rest of the document.
Karenh
Such a busy week you have ahead of you! But I can say from experience (wink) that the party doesn't have to disrupt things. Anyway: thinking about your chapter 1 problem. And wondering: does this chapter necessarily have to go in the thesis? Could you publish it separately now, thus negating the need to re-focus it? As I recall, you have plenty of other chapters for the thesis! Just a thought ... good luck with the week!
DeleteKarenh, I will keep that re-drafting optimism in my back pocket. Thank you! And the nice thing about this solo parenting stint is that the kids are in school, but I'm not. Home alone during the day!
DeleteLet'sDoThis, I feel very affirmed by your suggestion because that's what I was thinking of doing. I thought I might revise the chapter to submit as an article (it's most recent iteration is already in article form anyway), Then just use a few relevant parts for the intro (or for a new Chap 1 that is more like an intro and lit review). Thanks for helping me feel as if I might be on the right track with my thoughts!