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 […]
Read More »burnout
Moving your own goal posts
Jo VanEvery, Academic Career Guide · It’s okay to move your goal posts I don’t know about you, but my plans for January are already off the rails…. I did have a restful and enjoyable break. But I really struggled to come up with an idea for this month’s long post, or the time and […]
Read More »Burnout is real!
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 […]
Read More »Overcommitted? Declaring a moratorium
Jo VanEvery, Academic Career Guide · Overcommitted? Declaring a moratorium It’s easy to get overcommitted. In addition to all the things you have to do, there are a lot of things you would like to do. You don’t want to manage your workload by dropping everything that makes your work meaningful. In fact, I encourage […]
Read More »Are things getting worse? Or is dystopia the new normal?
This post was originally written during a time when many universities and workplaces had shifted to remote work in response to the COVID pandemic. Although circumstances have now changed for many people, much of what I say in this post still applies. Jo VanEvery, Academic Career Guide · Is dystopia the new normal? Things were […]
Read More »Mid-semester burnout
Academic staff at 60 UK universities are on strike from 25 November to 4 December. The week before the strike, I saw some Twitter conversations about the upcoming strike, workload, and the fact that some folks are so overloaded they are apologising in meetings for not being able to speak coherently. In the same week, […]
Read More »Do you have too many active writing projects?
This post is part of a series on Optimizing Focus. Finding it hard to focus is normal. Self-flagellation does not work to improve your focus. Furthermore it takes time and energy that takes you away from your writing; it is another distraction. I firmly believe that you can approach your work compassionately rather than violently. […]
Read More »The importance of quitting
Jo VanEvery, Academic Career Guide · The importance of quitting Quitting has a bad rap. Winners never quit and quitters never win. When the going gets tough, the tough keep going. I can see how you don’t want to give up at the first hurdle, but sometimes quitting is actually a good option. The option […]
Read More »If someone’s crying, something needs to change.
Jo VanEvery, Academic Career Guide · If someone’s crying, something needs to change Although initially written about teaching, this post applies to any area of your work or life where you feel the things in the first set of bullet points. No one said teaching would be easy but … You shouldn’t be exhausted. You shouldn’t […]
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