10 Summer Productivity Questions

As some of you lucky semester scholars approach summer--my chagrin will turn to gratitude in September, when all of you are back and me and my quarter system cronies are still free!--I thought I would present a few questions for you to contemplate. Of course, you have worked on your writing processes previously, but this might be a a good time to check in with yourself so you can make sure your summer is a productive writing time. Summer is a good time to consider making changes to your writing practices, but not only due to having more time. I suggest that you make changes not only based-upon your summer schedule, but also seek sustainable practices that you can use during the year.

1) How is the quality of your individual writing sessions? What problems exist within it?
2) What blocks and barriers have been getting in the way (other than time, that does not count!!)?
3) What do you need to do to ameliorate these barriers? Which are skill-based, which are psychosocial?
4) If you do not know how to remove these barriers, how will you seek support/assistance to make the needed changes?
5) What are your primary and secondary (and tertiary, ect) writing projects? How will you divide your writing sessions to account for them?
6) What are the warning signs that your writing is "going off the rails"?
7) What is your plan for when you notice the above warning signs?
8) How will you use accountability?
9) What strengths to you want to maximize vis a vis your writing?
10) When it is over, what are realistic measures of your having had a productive summer?

Should you wish to talk about any of these, come on by my drop in coaching hour! It is free to all how need it!  https://writepublishthrive.blogspot.com/2019/01/zoom-drop-in-coaching-wednesdays-5pm.html

More on Entry Points

Entry points are super important. An entry point is the exact place and "idea" where you will start a writing session. By having a clearly defined entry point, decided upon at the end of your previous writing session, you can avoid the dreaded "paralysis by analysis" that can come from decision making during a writing session.

My goal for each writing session is to enter and focus as fully as possible for my optimal session length. By so doing, I can be efficient and get my work done in a sustainable and healthy manner.

Word Count Goals

For a long time, I was an advocate of word count goals. Perhaps advocate is not the best word, but I would most certainly use them myself. I saw achieving minimum word counts as part of my daily practice, and used them to motivate me.

The longer I write and think about what helps scholars and writers succeed, the less I am excited about using word counts for structure or motivation. Instead, I prefer to make sure that each writing session, based upon a sustainable amount of time, is as optimal designed and executed as possible. By continuously improving how we go about writing, we are more likely to increase our actual needed word count.

Word counts are great for people who like to compete with themselves, as I sometimes am known to do. However, they may be less useful for those suffering from anxiety, at least until they learn to deal with the anxiety related cognition that can interfere with their writing.

Completion of a task and anxiety

To quote a dear colleague..... completion of a task is energy that is more powerful than the anxiety that surrounds the personal delays.