Have you ever been in a situation where you fully intend to say no to a request, but your guilt gets the best of you? Then, before you know it, you’ve taken on an additional commitment that is more time consuming and frustrating than you ever would have imagined. This is a problem that
It seems like reaching “inbox zero” is the holy grail for busy people. We are in a never-ending battle with our inbox, and no matter how hard we try, we feel powerless to control the flow of messages sent to us. Part of our dilemma concerning email is that when we manage our email
Trying to please everyone may be holding you back from productive writing. Raise your hand if you’ve ever been in the following situation. You are in your office working, with the door closed. Suddenly, someone knocks on your door. You answer it to a student who has dropped by to discuss their grade. You remind
It seems that on many occasions, people use their stress as a bragging right. Rather than simply acknowledging their stress, they display it as something to be admired or even emulated. Stress seems to afford a certain type of status. Colleagues, mentors, and friends expect that we “ought” to be stressed. And I use
As of late, I have been working with a few clients who desire time management consulting or accountability coaching. It makes perfect sense – one of the most difficult aspects of writing is finding the time to do it. Over the course of doing such work, on more than one occasion I have heard
It’s absolutely no secret that one of the biggest obstacles to writing is finding time to write. Suggestions abound for how to find time: set a timer, lock your office door, write at the same time every day, go on writing retreats, assume a new identity and hide out to write (if only there
A few days ago I had the pleasure of co-hosting a #withaPhD Twitter chat with Jennifer Polk of From PhD to Life. The topic I chose was “working nine to five” (you can see the chat archived on Storify here) and my intention was to talk about maintaining a balance between working and having a
We have all experienced this moment. You’re in your office, settling in to write, grade papers, or what have you. Suddenly, a colleague strolls in, sits in the chair next to your desk, and begins to chat about, well, you don’t even know what they’re saying because you’re looking at the clock and thinking about