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<\/a><\/p>\nI was somewhat surprised that it was retweeted so often (especially in the summer quietness of the twitterverse). But the more I thought about it, the more I realized that I shouldn\u2019t be surprised at all.<\/p>\n
Then I remembered a dust-up on twitter during the December, 2015 break. There were tweets coming from different parts of higher education about who is working\u2014and not working\u2014over the \u201cbreak.\u201d What started out\u2014in my view\u2014as a simple gauge of who was working ended up being this ongoing \u201cwho is busier\u201d thing couple with many tweets trying to make folks feel guilty and is if they were wrong if they weren\u2019t working. (Granted the most heated part of this discussion started over in the sciences where the soft money as salary makes the stress and the work schedules a whole lot different.) But, the discussion got so out of hand\u2014even by twitter standards\u2014that the original poster deleted the original tweet and completely backed out of the conversations.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s not uncommon to answer the question of \u201chow are you?\u201d with \u201cBusy.\u201d We\u2019re rhetoricians and language people and some of us are even linguists, and that reply isn\u2019t a standard and in some ways doesn\u2019t answer the question. We\u2019re all busy, and the degree and kind of busy varies based on our jobs (which I should remind you are all different) and our own personal priorities (which I should remind you are all different). But, it\u2019s an important point when the academic culture has turned to one where overwork , overproduction, and guilt is the norm. And the standard answer to a question of wellness is \u201cbusy.\u201d<\/p>\n
We have created a culture of \u201ctoo busy\u201d that leads to the constant feelings of burnout, exhaustion , and guilt. And within that culture, it is perceived that if you aren\u2019t too busy or cranky because of overwork then you\u2019re doing something wrong or you\u2019re not doing something right. It is painful to watch so many new faculty and grad students (hell, and \u201cold \u201c faculty, too!) put their health\u2014physical and mental\u2014in danger because of this culture.<\/p>\n
As I continue to work on a project about tenure and promotion and have started to interview people, I am discouraged by the pervasiveness of the thinking of faculty that one has to overproduce to just be sure that criteria are met. I guarantee you there is no extra tenure for all that extra work. (and the documents I\u2019ve examined and senior faculty I have interviewed don\u2019t seem to support this stance for overproduction.)<\/p>\n
This whole culture and festishization of overproduction has to stop. Truly. \u00b9<\/p>\n
I totally get that sometimes it is hard to separate our lives from our work because we do in many ways have a life of the mind, so it can\u2019t be separated, or we feel we have a vocation that\u2019s it\u2019s not work at all. And that\u2019s great. But every person and every mind needs a break.<\/p>\n
Some will even claim that they love parts of their job so much that it seems like a hobby. I get that too. But I would encourage you to actually find a hobby that isn\u2019t connected to your research, service, or teaching.<\/p>\n
So how can we start to shift the culture to make over production and over work stop? I don\u2019t have all the answers to this question, but I do have a couple of simple suggestions for trying to break the viscous overwork cycle.<\/p>\n
The Butt in Chair Philosophy<\/strong><\/p>\nThe writing only gets done when you\u2019re trying to do it rather than talking about it. No matter if this writing is for research or a big service report or for teaching materials. You have to start to be able to finish and that requires your butt being in the chair. It is true that if try to have a set time\u2014everyday\u2014you will learn habits to become more efficient. The positive energy from getting things done should lead to being able to feel as though you can take some time off.<\/p>\n
Quiet time<\/strong><\/p>\nNothing helps with getting work done than having brain space to do it. That means you have to find a way to give yourself some quiet time to let your brain relax and de-stress and de-clutter. For many people, exercise helps with this, even if it\u2019s just a short walk. For others, it\u2019s meditation, and for others still, it\u2019s cleaning or reading anything non-academic.<\/p>\n
\u00a0This is a job<\/strong><\/p>\nWhen I think back to when I was full-time consultant, the thing I am most thankful from that time is learning how to do a job. Yes, academia is a unique kind of job, but shifting your thinking slightly will enable you to get a lot more work done when you have a set schedule for yourself. And when you hit the end of the work day, you reward yourself\u2014guilt free\u2014with small things like your favorite beer or wine, a decadent dessert, a long bath\u2026whatever it is that truly feels like a treat for a job well done.<\/p>\n
Understand your requirements<\/strong><\/p>\nDo not rely on lore or anecdote. Do not compare yourself to others. Instead let your tenure and promotion documents become your best friend. Understand what they mean and how they are enacted. Ask trusted mentors internally about any unwritten requirements, and make a plan to achieve the requirements at YOUR institution. (Institutions vary widely so here is where a narrow focus is good. \u00b2<\/p>\n
Focus on the positives<\/strong><\/p>\nAs I\u2019ve written before, there\u2019s a lot of \u201cNo\u2019s\u201d in this job<\/a>. Focus on the positive. Surround yourself with those people who are positive. Take advice from those who have the kind of success like you would like to have, that is, those that seem have found some semblance of balance.<\/p>\nAnd the field as a whole needs to acknowledge that when we can, we need to be certain that our policies and more importantly unwritten expectations are in sync. Us oldsters have that obligation to those coming up behind us to do what we can to make our working environments as kind and humane as possible.<\/p>\n
Finally, we need to have sustained discussions about strategies for balancing our lives to include guilt-free breaks and vacations \u00b3, as well as trying to understand what has caused this culture of overproduction.<\/p>\n
Cause this is my hope, the next time I ask someone \u201chow are you?\u201d I really want to know how you are rather than to hear \u201cbusy.\u201d We all deserve that. We really, really do.<\/p>\n
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\n- Now, before I am accused of being a hypocrite because most folks in the little technical and professional communication world will immediately call me out as one who works too much, let me go ahead and publicly acknowledge a secret I have long held dear. I take time off. Since I was consultant for over 15 years with high-pressure deadlines and multiple projects always going on at the same time, I developed strategies and habits that have lead me to be painfully efficient in short periods of time. So while many folks think I am a workaholic and I work all the time, the fact of the matter is that I don\u2019t. So when I tweet things like the need to take breaks or tell you in conversations that you need to take time for yourself, I truly am practicing what I preach. (And I have long said out loud, repeatedly, that I am a strange and unique anti-academic and I should never, ever be the example for most anything! \ud83d\ude42\u00a0 I do gather good data though. So you that can be an exemplar!)<\/li>\n
- Admittedly, this does not take into account all scenarios such as if you\u2019re considering going back on the market. That\u2019s a post for another day.<\/li>\n
- Also, I totally get that there are periods where things converge that you hadn\u2019t planned and there are few choices but to put in a series of long days (and nights). But this should be the exception, and not the rule.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
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<\/a>I\u2019ve been thinking a lot about burnout, overproduction (the feeling you have to produce just one more thing), and the increase in the number of conversations that revolve around how busy we all are. It\u2019s almost as if we\u2019re on a hamster wheel and we\u2019re afraid to get off.<\/p>\n