Humming42 and I are hosting the 'mid year' iteration of TLQ, and it's a bumper edition: it will begin on the weekend of 7-8th May and end on the last weekend in August, 27-28th.
All welcome, for part or all of the period - whether you've done this before or are new, whether you had a great run in the last iteration or quietly disappeared after a few weeks, whether your summer goal is an entire thesis or a complete draft of a conference paper or just a tidy house and a relaxed mind for the following academic semester... and feel free to use the comments here to relieve your TLQ group withdrawal symptoms - suggested topic, if anyone wants one, how do you set session goals that are both achievable and appealing?
Strangely I was wondering this as I read your (JaneB)'s most recent Year of New Years. I was wondering how I would do if I tried to plan my summer in more detail and set more specific goals. As it's the summer, appealing is a really key factor. I don't want to spend more time than necessary on unappealing tasks. One on hand that sounds like a bit of a temper tantrum more suited to a teen who doesn't want to clean their rooms, but on the other hand it reflects the degree to which semester is full of tasks that are unappealing and the need for freedom that the summer brings. Particularly as formal tasks encroach further and further into the summer.
ReplyDeleteAt the moment, some of the most appealing tasks for summer are TBC - will this get funded, will that happen. And it is difficult to fit achievable around the tenuous cloud of appealing. I think this year I will think about sitting down with a cup of tea on the first day of semester in September: what do I want to think back on and feel really satisfied that I did this summer? What would I regret spending time on? And what must I do to find more time during semester for TLQ.
That's a great way to look at it! I also like the positive mental image of starting the new semester in a chair with a cup of tea, not running around like a blue-a***d proverbial...
DeleteEven if the answer is a bit vague (for example, I don't know if there will be building work in the lab this summer, so I don't know if I can do an actual experiment, but I'd be satisfied if I had all the results ready for a paper (so I could write in spare half hours during the teaching semester), either from an actual experiment or from simulations or from data-crunching some stuff from past student projects - so if my goal is 'results for one paper' that'd allow for the vagueness.
Although knowing me I'll still find a fourth option!
I like the reflection-over-tea gauge of success!
DeleteI, too, like the idea of appealing (and will cogitate on that), but am mostly concerned about achievable. There's too much I would really like to do (and can easily picture being much happier, saner, less stressed etc., etc. for having done), so the problem, as usual, is being realistic while still at least a bit ambitious (or trying to find the balance between enough sense of urgency to actually get something done and stressing myself out, especially since I tend to get *less* done when I'm busy beating myself up for not getting more done, if that makes sense; as I've said before, I'm a recovering perfectionist who's never quite sure whether she's swung too far in the other direction).
ReplyDeleteI can definitely identify the areas of tension when it comes to prioritizing; the main problem seems to be balancing time for professional and personal (mostly household/logistical/financial/self-care) goals, and within that, there's also the tension between the various kinds of goals in each category (professional work that has to do with my actual job vs. my original research area, and the various personal goals vs. each other).
There's also some tension between trying to get into routines (especially exercise) and carving out some time when I get to concentrate on just one thing (whether that's relaxing or doing one particular kind of work), because I find juggling different goals especially tiring, and suspect I'm less efficient that way).
And, as usual, I'm looking at the beginning of my biggest block of time off (in May) and realizing that it's not really "off," at least not for a while, because there's so much still going on. And then once things quiet down and people are beginning to disappear for vacations, I'm going to be back "on," teaching in July. And there's a big professional project for which we got a grant, and may get another about which I'm very excited, but which is also going to make time off more difficult.
So I guess it's a good thing I've got another week (or more) to think about this all, and try to strike some kind of balance. . .
Well, whether or not it's appealing or achievable, I have to finish my PhD thesis. This will be much harder and more daunting since I just found out that my supervisor is leaving my uni on July 31st, and I'm planning to submit in late September. I'm feeling a little high and dry, so I'll need my TLQ peeps.
ReplyDelete