Need a Boost of Encouragement? The Accomplishment List



Dear Real Academics,

As faculty (at the time of this writing), I am on a 9 month-contract. But, every summer for the past 7 years in my tenure-track position seems to be a non-stop list of things to do including attending dissertation defenses, reviewing manuscripts, reviewing conference proposals, going to research meetings, analyzing data, writing and submitting conference proposals, writing and submitting manuscripts and grants, setting up classes for the next semester, setting up meetings for the next semester, answering student advising emails, managing upcoming faculty searches, and more. So, you can imagine how annoyed I get when I hear people assume that I am so lucky to be an "educator" because I get summers off. I wish! 

Around the end of July this year, I was near burn-out. Around the first week of August, I was looking ahead to the gazillion of emails streaming into my in-box to get things set up for the start of the semester (not to mention the added stress of the pandemic panic and fear that seems to be seeping into everything and everyone -- which I must say I see as very, very, very unhealthy for society, institutions, and individuals). I suddenly felt extremely tired. I began to question what I had done all summer and why I was so exhausted. 

I then remembered a very wise exercise to help encourage me to keep going. It's called the "Accomplishment List" and it comes from my amazing colleagues' (Dr. Goodson, Dr. Beigi, and Dr. Shirmohammadi's) book, 90 Days 90 Ways: Inspiration, Tips, & Strategies for Academic Writers. (If you are an academic writer at any level -- grad student to professor -- I highly recommend this book for writing inspiration and ideas).


 

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The idea behind the "Accomplishment List" is to make a list of things you have "accomplished, finished, or set in motion" (Goodson et al., 2020, p. 115). The accomplishments can be anything from tangible items from any to-do lists or calendar items you can go back through to non-tangible items such as keeping cool during a challenging work meeting. 

So, I made my list. After seeing it on paper, I realized what a crazy amount of work/things I had accomplished and felt much better. I could relate to what Pat Goodson states when she writes, "I can't begin to describe how affirming and validating these lists have been -- true and faithful 'reality checks'. I often find that I can accomplish much, much more than I can recall!" (Goodson et al., 2020, p. 115).

Are you tired or burnt-out, Real Academic? Then consider writing -- not another to do list -- but a reflective "Accomplishment List".  See if it makes a difference in how you feel. I am willing to bet it will. Then, go read my other blog post, The Value of Rest. :-)

Until next time,

Maggie

www.therealacademics.com

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