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How To Select A Journal For Your Academic Article

How To Select A Journal For Your Academic Article

  • October 6, 2021
  • Journal Articles
  • 0 Comments

Successfully publishing an academic article requires understanding the landscape of scholarly journals. When you’re writing an academic article, this may not be your priority as you rightfully focus on the substance of your argument, clarity in writing, and effective use of evidence. Yet, even the best of articles can be rejected if submitted to a

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October 6, 2021 0

The Differences Between Academic Articles and Book Chapters

The Differences Between Academic Articles and Book Chapters

  • May 5, 2021
  • Uncategorized
  • 0 Comments

This post is the third in our series on genre in academic writing. To read the introductory post you can click here; the second post, on the difference between dissertations and monographs, is available here. In this post, we’re going to discuss three different genres: journal articles, chapters in edited volumes, and monograph chapters. We’ll

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May 5, 2021 0

The Difference Between Dissertations And Books

The Difference Between Dissertations And Books

  • April 14, 2021
  • Uncategorized
  • 0 Comments

This post is the second in our series on genre in academic writing. To read the introductory post you can click here. In this post, we’re going to discuss two different genres: dissertations and books. As we discuss the two genres, we’re going to focus on five components: the goal of the genre, the format,

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April 14, 2021 0

Genres of Academic Writing

Genres of Academic Writing

  • April 1, 2021
  • Academic WritingWriting Tips
  • 1 Comment

Academics write a lot, but not all of their writing is the same. In fact, on a given day academics can write in two or three different styles. You might work on a peer-review of an article, then shift to your own article manuscript. Then, you might edit a grant proposal with an impending deadline.

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April 1, 2021 1

Whose Academic Book Are You Writing?

Whose Academic Book Are You Writing?

  • January 12, 2021
  • Book Writing
  • 0 Comments

If you’re writing an academic book, you’ve probably spent some thinking about the type of book you want to write. You’ve also likely heard a lot of opinions — some solicited, some not — concerning the “right” way to write an academic book.   Many academics — especially junior scholars — are pressured to write

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January 12, 2021 0

Emotional Labor and Writing

Emotional Labor and Writing

  • September 30, 2020
  • Book WritingWriting Tips
  • 0 Comments

A few days ago, I was working with a client on revising a section of their manuscript. The draft required some re-thinking, and as we discussed the reorganization, I could hear the hesitation in their voice. The revisions would be challenging, but that wasn’t what was giving this writer pause. Instead, it was the prospect

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September 30, 2020 0

How to Make Time for Your Scholarship

How to Make Time for Your Scholarship

  • September 10, 2020
  • Uncategorized
  • 0 Comments

Do you feel like you have enough time for your scholarship right now? Are you worried that you won’t be able to make time for your writing until you’re back in your favorite coffee shop, latte in hand and “concentration” playlist queued up? You don’t have to wait for the stars to be aligned to

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September 10, 2020 0

Three Reasons Your Academic Manuscript is Unwieldy

Three Reasons Your Academic Manuscript is Unwieldy

  • July 1, 2020
  • Book WritingWriting Tips
  • 0 Comments

Have you ever sat down to work on an academic manuscript and just started writing…and writing… and writing? Not necessarily in one writing session. I’m talking about the academic manuscript that gets ahead of you, that starts with one observation or argument but turns into a piece of writing that’s twice as long as it

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July 1, 2020 0

Simple Productivity Is Open for Enrollment

Simple Productivity Is Open for Enrollment

  • June 25, 2020
  • ProductivityServices
  • 0 Comments

What are you doing for the rest of the year? I know, I know. What a question! If you’re like most academics, you have no idea. Whether you’ll be teaching face to face or online is to be determined (no matter what your institution is saying right now). You don’t know if your kids will

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June 25, 2020 0

Mastering Basic Productivity Techniques

Mastering Basic Productivity Techniques

  • June 19, 2020
  • Productivity
  • 0 Comments

Have you ever taken a knife skills course?    Generally, you only need 3 or 4 knives in your kitchen; a chef’s knife, a serrated knife, and a paring knife will do most everything. The key to successful knife skills is knowing how to use each knife to do multiple jobs. With a chef’s knife,

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June 19, 2020 0

Seeking Feedback for Your Academic Book

Seeking Feedback for Your Academic Book

  • May 12, 2020
  • Book Writing
  • 0 Comments

If you’re writing a book, it’s important to create a system for receiving feedback. That system might include feedback from close friends, colleagues in your discipline, mentors, and experts in your subject area. It can also include working with a developmental editor. For that feedback to be effective it’s important to know what type you

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May 12, 2020 0

Let’s Write Your Academic Book…Together

Let’s Write Your Academic Book…Together

  • May 7, 2020
  • Book Writing
  • 0 Comments

Writing a book is really freakin’ hard. With summer starting, some writers will want to turn their attention to their books – especially after this beast of a semester where much of your time was focused on teaching via Zoom, Canvas, and whatever other digital tools your university (and your kid’s school) threw at you

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May 7, 2020 0

An Overlooked Book Writing Guide

An Overlooked Book Writing Guide

  • March 4, 2020
  • Book Writing
  • 0 Comments

This is the fourth entry in my mini-series on how to start writing a book. To read earlier entries in this series, you can click here, here, and here.   You have what seems like a million decisions to make when you start writing a book. How will you structure the chapters? Should you use

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March 4, 2020 0

Effective Writing Plans for Books

Effective Writing Plans for Books

  • February 27, 2020
  • Uncategorized
  • 0 Comments

In my work as a coach, I spend a lot of time in conversation with scholars planning complex writing projects. Lately, this has meant developing writing plans for books, as nearly 80% of my 1:1 clients are writing one. The meta cognitive work required to successfully plan and execute the writing of a book is

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February 27, 2020 0

How Long Does It Take to Write an Academic Book?

How Long Does It Take to Write an Academic Book?

  • February 20, 2020
  • Uncategorized
  • 1 Comment

When I first speak with academics who want to do 1:1 coaching with me, they often come to our consultation call with two things: a deadline and a calendar. They ask me a question that sounds something like this: “if I have 8 hours a week for the next 6 months, save two weeks when

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February 20, 2020 1

Perfectionism Won’t Save You

Perfectionism Won’t Save You

  • February 13, 2020
  • Uncategorized
  • 0 Comments

Lately, I’ve been thinking about Impostor Syndrome and what it means. We identify Impostor Syndrome as a mindset problem – one of insecurity and self-doubt. It’s a problem that afflicts high-achievers, who are ignoring the evidence of their own success. One way we express our Impostor Syndrome is through perfectionism. As a coach, I work

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February 13, 2020 0

How to Start Writing an Academic Book

How to Start Writing an Academic Book

  • February 6, 2020
  • Book Writing
  • 0 Comments

Writing a book is one of the most overwhelming, intimidating projects a junior scholar can undertake. Many writers quite logically look for resources on how to write a proposal, what should go in an academic book, developing a timeline for writing it, and so forth. There’s some excellent advice out there – in books, blogs,

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February 6, 2020 0

Implementation Intentions

Implementation Intentions

  • January 30, 2020
  • Uncategorized
  • 0 Comments

How do you make sure that you follow through on your plans? One strategy I talk about often is breaking down big goals into their easiest first steps as a way to maintain momentum. In this blog post, based on a video coaching session I recently conducted, I’m going to focus on one specific technique

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January 30, 2020 0

How To Use Your Sabbatical

How To Use Your Sabbatical

  • January 16, 2020
  • Uncategorized
  • 0 Comments

Sabbaticals. Academics look forward to them more than canceled faculty meetings, payday, and Beyonce tickets – combined. The prospect of so much unstructured time is exciting and overwhelming. Exciting because you finally have time to work on your writing! Overwhelming because there’s a lot of pressure to do all. the. things. during your sabbatical. You

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January 16, 2020 0

The Year Ahead for Up In Consulting

The Year Ahead for Up In Consulting

  • January 10, 2020
  • Uncategorized
  • 0 Comments

Happy New Year! I’m so excited for 2020. In 2019, Up In Consulting had a year of growth and I learned so much. I worked with clients in a multitude of capacities and identified what I’m best at as well as how to be most helpful to my clients. In this post, I’ll share what

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January 10, 2020 0

Working Over the Break: Setting Realistic Expectations

Working Over the Break: Setting Realistic Expectations

  • December 11, 2019
  • Uncategorized
  • 0 Comments

We’re approaching that lovely time of year when academics claim they’re going to take a break but actually intend to work. Sound familiar? If you’re raising your hand, then keep reading. I’m going to explain how you can get work done over break without burning out or ending up disappointed.   What’s Urgent?  If you

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December 11, 2019 0

Effectively Asking for Feedback

Effectively Asking for Feedback

  • December 6, 2019
  • Asking For Help
  • 1 Comment

Do you struggle with asking for feedback on your writing from your peers and mentors? Writers often seek my support for developmental editing because they’re scared to ask for feedback from scholars in their field. In my conversations with clients, I’ve discovered there are four reasons writers hesitate in asking for feedback.    In this

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December 6, 2019 1

Using Time Audits to Improve Your Workflow

Using Time Audits to Improve Your Workflow

  • November 20, 2019
  • Productivity
  • 0 Comments

Do you ever reach Friday afternoon and wonder what the heck you did all week? Do you find yourself working 60+ hours a week and wondering how some academics manage to get everything done in less than 45 hours? If so, you should do a time audit. This is an exercise I’ve been doing with

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November 20, 2019 0

Trash Your To-Do List

Trash Your To-Do List

  • November 14, 2019
  • Productivity
  • 0 Comments

Do you have a daily to-do list? How often do you check off every item on it? If you’ve been a reader of this blog for any amount of time, you know I rarely take hard, uncompromising positions. In fact, I pride myself on the personalized, iterative approach I bring to productivity when working with

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November 14, 2019 0

Three Benefits of Outlining Academic Articles

Three Benefits of Outlining Academic Articles

  • October 24, 2019
  • Writing Tips
  • 0 Comments

If you’ve been reading this blog, you know how important it is to break down big goals into small tasks. I’ve shared examples here and here. Good planning relies on paying attention to detail. I think about planning not only in terms of organizing your calendar, but also in organizing your thoughts. One of the

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October 24, 2019 0

Four Ways to Align Your Goals with Your Priorities

Four Ways to Align Your Goals with Your Priorities

  • October 9, 2019
  • Productivity
  • 0 Comments

During a recent newsletter coaching call (are you signed up for my newsletter? I offer occasional group coaching to subscribers), a participant asked about aligning her goals with her priorities. More specifically, she expressed concern that she wasn’t completing her work in a reasonable amount of time.  I bet you can relate.  Here’s the general

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October 9, 2019 0

Opportunistic Writing Time

Opportunistic Writing Time

  • September 25, 2019
  • Uncategorized
  • 0 Comments

How can you effectively manage your writing time when you don’t have a lot of it? For many writers, short periods of writing time are particularly challenging. Yet, short writing sessions might be your only option.    Academic writers romanticize long blocks of uninterrupted writing time. Very few scholars, however, can devote an entire day

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September 25, 2019 0

Why creating tasks is so hard.

Why creating tasks is so hard.

  • September 11, 2019
  • Goal setting
  • 0 Comments

Have you ever sat down to make a to-do list and felt overwhelmed by the enormity of your goals? Many academic writers struggle with this feeling. There’s just so much to accomplish (publish these articles for tenure, prep an entirely new course, plan this conference, etc), and the journey to achieving those goals can feel

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September 11, 2019 0

Short Writing Blocks are Worth It

Short Writing Blocks are Worth It

  • August 26, 2019
  • PlanningProductivityUncategorized
  • 0 Comments

With a new semester comes changes to your writing schedule. During the summer, you may have had long blocks of writing time away from faculty meetings, office hours, and course prep. Once the semester starts, you may only have short writing blocks —as short as 15-30 minutes a day— when you’re teaching, so it’s important

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August 26, 2019 0

Semester Writing Plans: Don’t Fixate On The Wrong Goals

Semester Writing Plans: Don’t Fixate On The Wrong Goals

  • August 5, 2019
  • Goal settingProductivityUncategorized
  • 0 Comments

The beginning of the semester brings a new opportunity to make a semester writing plan. For academics, late summer can have a New Year’s resolution vibe. But, just like the New Year’s plans that end up in the resolution graveyard, your writing plans can be similarly unattainable.    The problem of unattainable goals has two

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August 5, 2019 0

Book Review: The One Thing

Book Review: The One Thing

  • July 18, 2019
  • Book Reviews
  • 0 Comments

I read The One Thing: The Surprisingly Simple Truth Behind Extraordinary Results by Gary Keller and Jay Papasan because I saw Dr. Raul Pacheco-Vega mention it on his Twitter feed. I thought it would be a useful book for my work with academic writers in The Productivity Pipeline and Simple Productivity. Although this isn’t an

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July 18, 2019 0

One or More: How Many Projects To Work on at Once

One or More: How Many Projects To Work on at Once

  • May 13, 2019
  • Planning
  • 0 Comments

Summer’s finally here (at least in the Northern Hemisphere)! The weather’s warmer, the lemonade is flowing, and it’s time to get sh*t done.   If you’re an academic writer, your summer work plan probably includes more than one project (keep in mind I consider each chapter of a book as a separate project). Between writing,

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May 13, 2019 0

How To Plan Your Summer Writing

How To Plan Your Summer Writing

  • April 19, 2019
  • Productivity
  • 0 Comments

Summer is right around the corner. Finally, three long months when you get to focus on your own writing. You’re either relishing the prospect of having long, uninterrupted blocks of writing time or you’re feeling like that much unstructured time is a recipe for disaster.   No matter how you’re feeling, it’s essential that you

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April 19, 2019 0

How To Start a Revise and Resubmit

How To Start a Revise and Resubmit

  • March 26, 2019
  • Revising
  • 0 Comments

Congratulations! You opened your email to a message of revise and resubmit.  This is an excellent response for your submitted manuscript. Articles rarely get accepted without revisions and desk rejection rates are high. A revise and resubmit means the editor and reviewers see promise in your work (no matter how snarky Reviewer 2 might sound!).

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March 26, 2019 0

Am I Writing Enough? How to Create a Sustainable Writing Practice

Am I Writing Enough? How to Create a Sustainable Writing Practice

  • February 20, 2019
  • Uncategorized
  • 0 Comments

Clients normally ask me one of two related questions – “am I writing enough” and “am I writing fast enough.” There’s no correct answer to those questions. There are answers, but not good ones. There are, however, good ways to think about your writing practice and your progress.   Many writers track their writing because

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February 20, 2019 0

Two Reasons You’re Missing Self-Imposed Deadlines

Two Reasons You’re Missing Self-Imposed Deadlines

  • February 12, 2019
  • PlanningProductivity
  • 0 Comments

I was talking to a client the other day who told me they were behind on their writing. They felt disappointed at their lack of progress.   Unfortunately, this client isn’t unique. This is a conversation I have with many clients. Writers who fall behind on their work often internalize a sense of failure and

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February 12, 2019 0

Embracing Your First Draft

Embracing Your First Draft

  • January 25, 2019
  • Uncategorized
  • 0 Comments

Some time ago, I posted some Twitter encouragement for writing shitty first drafts. The response was, well, surprising.     I didn’t expect it to resonate quite as strongly as it did. I believed everyone had read Anne Lamott and knew the importance of shitty first drafts. But perhaps they believed that shitty first drafts

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January 25, 2019 0

Kinder, Gentler Resolutions

Kinder, Gentler Resolutions

  • January 10, 2019
  • Goal setting
  • 0 Comments

Happy New Year!   Did you make a resolution for 2019? Do you normally make resolutions?   I used to love making resolutions. I’d spent a good chunk of December thinking through what I wanted for the new year, and what I wanted to leave behind. I always had a lot of hope for those

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January 10, 2019 0

How to Prioritize Projects: A Simple Strategy

How to Prioritize Projects: A Simple Strategy

  • October 3, 2018
  • Goal settingProductivity
  • 0 Comments

Congratulations! You just got a revise and resubmit. The necessary revisions will be extensive, but nothing you can’t handle. Unfortunately, the editor gave you a strict deadline, and you’re working on your book proposal. You didn’t expect this revise and resubmit to reach your desk so quickly, so understandably, you feel a bit panicked. You

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October 3, 2018 0

Staying “On Track” With Your Writing Goals

Staying “On Track” With Your Writing Goals

  • September 11, 2018
  • Uncategorized
  • 0 Comments

It’s the beginning of the fall semester for academics in the Northern Hemisphere, which means many of you are setting your semester writing goals. Much of what goes into your schedule will be informed by what you did or didn’t achieve over the summer. Inevitably,  you’re berating yourself because you didn’t complete all of your

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September 11, 2018 0

The Deep Work of Book Writing

The Deep Work of Book Writing

  • June 28, 2018
  • Book WritingProductivity
  • 0 Comments

Book writers face two obstacles. First, they plan to write their book as if they aren’t working on anything else. Second, they work on everything else at the expense of writing their book. Here’s what I mean:   You’re writing a six-chapter book, and you give yourself nine months to complete it, from start to

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June 28, 2018 0

No, You’re Not Writing Your Book This Summer

No, You’re Not Writing Your Book This Summer

  • April 24, 2018
  • Book WritingProductivity
  • 0 Comments

Imagine walking through a bookstore and browsing the section on writing guides. You come across a title, How to Write Your Book in 90 Days: A Writer’s Manual. You roll your eyes and laugh. “What a ridiculous idea,” you think to yourself, “nobody can write a book in such a short amount of time.” A

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April 24, 2018 0

How to Write an Academic Book Proposal: Identifying Your Idea and Readership

How to Write an Academic Book Proposal: Identifying Your Idea and Readership

  • April 3, 2018
  • Book Writing
  • 0 Comments

Writing an academic book proposal is no joke. After spending countless hours thinking about your book and beginning the writing process, you have to distill the best ideas from your book into a document that is likely five percent of the length of your book (if you’re lucky). On top of that, you have to

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April 3, 2018 0

Inside the Mind of Your Editor

Inside the Mind of Your Editor

  • February 20, 2018
  • Editing
  • 0 Comments

Have you ever considered working with an editor and then talked yourself out of it? Perhaps you said something to yourself like, “I don’t need one more person to tell me what’s wrong with this article,” or “I’ll get all the comments I need during the revise and resubmit process.” In both instances, you may

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February 20, 2018 0

Stop Worrying About Your Colleague’s Productivity

Stop Worrying About Your Colleague’s Productivity

  • January 17, 2018
  • Impostor SyndromeProductivity
  • 0 Comments

You probably have someone in your department or workplace who works very, very hard. Their productivity is through the roof. You know who I’m talking about. Your colleague down the hall who is ALWAYS in their office. When you arrive in the morning, they are already there. When you leave in the evening, they’re still

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January 17, 2018 0

Goals, Reviewed. Join the 5-Day Goal Setting Challenge!

Goals, Reviewed. Join the 5-Day Goal Setting Challenge!

  • January 3, 2018
  • Goal settingProductivity
  • 0 Comments

Congratulations on completing another semester! You probably feel a great sense of relief. Unfortunately, this feeling is probably short-lived. This is what usually happens: We finish the semester in a frantic way (although hopefully less frantic than usual if you’ve been taking my blog posts to heart). We feel exhausted, and are just grateful to be DONE.

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January 3, 2018 0

End of Semester Mayhem: Here’s How to Finish Strong

End of Semester Mayhem: Here’s How to Finish Strong

  • December 6, 2017
  • Stress
  • 0 Comments

We’re nearing the end of the semester, so you’re probably beating yourself up for what you didn’t get done. Could have, should have, would have. We often exercise a merciless hindsight, where we are incredibly hard on ourselves while conveniently forgetting the reasons why we didn’t finish writing that article or grade 15 papers in

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December 6, 2017 0

#AcWriMo: New Month, New Goals

#AcWriMo: New Month, New Goals

  • October 31, 2017
  • Productivity
  • 0 Comments

November is Academic Writing Month, or #AcWriMo. This is a month where you set an ambitious writing goal and write with a community of fellow academic writers. You get virtual support and accountability. To learn more about it, check out this blog post. You can also follow the hashtag on Twitter and Facebook. I think #AcWriMo

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October 31, 2017 0

Writing Inspiration Isn’t Enough

Writing Inspiration Isn’t Enough

  • October 11, 2017
  • ProductivityWriting Tips
  • 1 Comment

Writing is hard, and sometimes we don’t feel like doing it. When that happens, we make excuse after excuse. “I’m tired,” or “I’m busy,” when what we really mean to say is “I don’t feel like it.”   There are a plethora of feelings one can have towards their writing, and my intention is not

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October 11, 2017 1

Eliminate Distraction With Some Simple Tricks

Eliminate Distraction With Some Simple Tricks

  • September 27, 2017
  • ProductivityWriting Tips
  • 2 Comments

  Raise your hand if this has happened to you:   You sit down at your desk to start writing and you have every intention to get a lot done. Unfortunately, there’s a pile of student papers on the desk. You begin to think about grading them, then you remember you have to make photocopies

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September 27, 2017 2

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