When did you first hear of “decision fatigue”? Perhaps, like me, it was when the New York Times Magazine published an article on decision fatigue and you started getting emails from your friends and family with links to that article. In fact, you probably received many links, and maybe the term “decision fatigue” has even [...]
Archive for the ‘planning’ Category
Decision Fatigue: When It’s Finally Time to Write, What Have You Got?
Posted in commitment, demands, determination, discipline, dissertation coach, dissertation writing, distractions, finishing the dissertation, following through, getting started, mental toughness, motivation, perseverance, planning, productivity, re-start, resilience, self-discipline, self-sabotage, using your strengths, write more easily, tagged decision fatigue, dissertation, dissertation coaching, ego depletion, John Tierney, mental toughness, Roy F. Baumeister, self-discpline, willpower, writing on September 25, 2011 | 2 Comments »
Mom’s in Maine – Marking Boundaries for Space to Write
Posted in boundaries, children, choice, commitment, determination, dissertation coach, dissertation writing, distractions, family, perseverance, planning, reasons for not writing, strategies, time management, writing, writing schedule, tagged assuming control, dissertation writing, juggling writing and children, Maine, making space for writing, producing text, productivity, setting boundaries, summer writing, work identity on July 22, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
Are your children home on vacation from school? And you’re trying to keep an eye on your children, as well as make headway on your writing project? How’s that working for you? During the school year, most academics teach and try to write. Both teaching and writing are critical for an academic’s success and are [...]
Cut through writing in chaos
Posted in accountability, deadline, dissertation coach, dissertation writing, focus, getting started, mental toughness, momentum, planning, productivity, realistic goals, take stock, tagged clear goals, concrete approach, dissertation coaching, make a plan, marker, thesis, track the argument, vacation, Writers Resources, writing, writing in chaos on June 10, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
Dissertation writers tell me they often find themselves writing in chaos. It’s not clear to them where they’re headed or how long it’s going to take to get wherever it is they’re going. Occasionally a cultural ritual, like the summer vacation, is a marker that writers use to cut through the chaos. The vacation can [...]
Full time job? And trying to write a dissertation, too?
Posted in academic, boundaries, commitment, determination, dissertation coach, dissertation writing, family, mental toughness, motivation, planning, restart writing, self-sabotage, time management, writing, writing schedule, tagged dissertation, dissertation coach, full-time jobs, juggling dissertation with work and family, scheduling dissertation time, writing on May 21, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
A few months ago a person who had finished her course work for her Ph.D., but had not done much toward her dissertation, wrote to say that as someone who worked full-time away from home, she couldn’t fathom how she could add writing her dissertation to the mix of not only working full-time, but also being [...]
Careers outside of academia: The Versatile PhD
Posted in dissertation coach, dissertation writing, higher education, planning, realistic goals, teaching, tagged Academia, Career, careers outside of academia, dissertation coach, dissertation writing, Employment, versatile Ph.D., writing on May 16, 2011 | 2 Comments »
Are you interested in careers that might not be in academia? Have you found it hard to find people in the academic environment who know about other careers? Just a few days ago I learned from a dissertation coaching client of a great service that may interest you. The Versatile PhD is a free online service [...]
Breaking the all-or-nothing mentality
Posted in academic, boundaries, coaching, dissertation boot camp, dissertation coach, dissertation writing, perfectionism, perseverance, planning, realistic goals, Smart Tips, strategies, using your strengths, writing habit, writing schedule, tagged all-or-nothing distortion, all-or-nothing thinking, daily writing habit, dissertation boot camp, goal, patience and writing, Smart Tips for Writers, thesis, write consistently, Writer, Writers Resources, writers' retreat, writing on February 6, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
You’re frustrated that it is taking so much time to get to the dissertation finish line. Do you minimize your efforts and withhold any sense of accomplishment for the work you’ve done to get this far? Each week you look back and dismiss your work “Is that all? Well, really, that wasn’t good enough.” [...]
How Much Writing Did You Do Today? Track How You Are Spending Your Time
Posted in academic, accountability, boot camp, coaching, commitment, discipline, dissertation boot camp, dissertation coach, dissertation writing, getting started, mental toughness, planning, productivity, resources, self-discipline, Smart Tips, take charge, take stock, time, time management, tagged accountability, Doctorate, spend time on writing, Thelma and Louise, thesis, Time, track your time, use small chunks of time to write your dissertation, write your dissertation in the time available, Writer, writing on January 23, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
Perhaps what is true for one of my dissertation clients is also true for you. She says that sometimes a day will pass, and she hasn’t done any writing. How do you use your time? How are you spending your time? Do those two questions mean the same thing? It seems to me that we [...]
Yes, Virginia, you do have time to write this week–and then, enjoy your holiday!
Posted in demands, determination, discipline, dissertation coach, dissertation writing, distractions, family, goals, grading, mental toughness, planning, self-discipline, teaching, time management, write more easily, writing schedule, tagged finish grading, write during Christmas week, write early before you're frazzled on December 20, 2010 | Leave a Comment »
For Christmas celebrants, we’re down to the final week. What are your goals for the week? 1. If you’re teaching, have you turned in your grades? Don’t belabor the choices. This isn’t the time to give lengthy comments on a writing project. Wind it up. 2. If you’re trying to get in a few more days of writing and [...]
