To outsiders, academic life looks plenty plush. We mostly control our schedules, have long breaks, have clearly defined job markets, & often have long-term job security.
What’s not to love?
What outsiders miss is the peril to productivity that comes with flexible schedules, long breaks in teaching, working in loosely knit (rumor-ridden) communities, & worry about securing long-term jobs.
To succeed, you must learn to manage time, arrange work, manage relationships, & work many years (& some luck) to secure a job you want.
And for that last bit, it can mean changing locations, far away from family, which can seem unmanageable.
So for people thinking about academic life, these challenges can appear daunting - sometimes leading people never to join, #earlycareer folks to leave, & others to never find a happy place in academe.
For those people, I get it. This isn’t a life for everyone, you need to find happiness.
For those that opt-in, here are a few tips on finding a routine that helps you navigate the perils of flexibility, irregular schedules, & the moves required to find a job you want.
First, find a routine.
To be productive, you need to find a rhythm in your daily life, in your work schedule, & in your yearly routine.
For me, I try to write at the same time each day, I try to schedule a day or two off a week, & I try to visit a few places each year.
I find that structure helps me balance work against life, maintain meaningful relationships, & feel more certain about what’s next.
Second, build relationships.
To be happy, you need friends.
You will need to be collegial at the office; but, it’s not the same as a social friendship.
You will enjoy academic life a lot more if you have a few friends in remote places, whom you can compare notes with, swap ideas, or just have a beer - & who will stay friends when you change jobs.
This requires going to the same conferences a few times.
Usually, by your third conference, you have people you look forward to meeting.
Third, you need consistency in your life.
While I traveled a lot & moved twice in four years, I have taken care to maintain constants.
For me, I’ve kept my hobbies. I read graphic novels, collect art, & cultivate daylilies (now you get the photo!).
At home, I made sure that stores & activities I liked were available. I didn’t have to retool all of my cooking & leisure habits. (If you don’t have Aldi’s, don’t call!).
At work, I maintained my research topics & my collaboration network. I kept up projects & started new ones with people that I like.
This meant that I could sustain my productivity during five years of moves, renovating houses, & more.
What matters, though, is not the productivity, what matters is the peace of mind that comes with imposing predictability & consistency on your routine necessary to navigate the perils of academic life.
If you do that, the rest of the job is more straightforward!
Best of luck!
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