Weird habits for productive work – part II
Sarah started this chain of thought, when writing about her weird habits to start off a productive work session. You can read about it here. We all spent a long time in our homes now, being at our so-called homeoffice – and still, the pandemic goes on and our reality nowadays is – well, you know. I am not going to tell you how crazy our lives are by now. Anyway, Sarah’s post got me thinking about my weird habits I started in my homeoffice or at Bamberg. And there are some strange implications and vibes I definitely need to start my working day – and some things that keep me get through it.
- The cereal bowl-mail-check.
I don’t know why, but I really like checking my mail before starting my working day, while still eating breakfast. I am not really reading them, but I really like the feeling of just knowing that there are some mails to be read when beginning to work. I actually plan my working day with some “admin breaks” – time slots when making coffee, waiting for colleagues to show up in Zoom meetings, … just some 5 to 10 min. slots, where I work on mails, I need to read, to answer, to write. You know, basic administrative stuff. Important mails are another thing. 😉 - The walk-by-the-river-overthinking (Bamberg-style)
When walking to my office at Bamberg, I will always choose the way next to the river and spent my time walking in concentrated silence thinking about my day. When to go for my lunch break, when to call my mum or my love, when to call it a day (depending on grocery shopping or cleaning or reading to do). I really like this walk of 20 min. in silence and peace. And I tend to ignore people, dogs and ducks (lots of them), because I am just focused on my thoughts. Maybe I look like a paralyzed zombie… - The weekend-reading or -gaming-marathon
Anything to restart my brain. I am again drawn into Assassin’s Creed Black Flag, when I am not reading novels like the Princess Bride or some classics (old and newer ones) like Brentano or Hesse. Next thing are the diaries of Frank Wedekind… It’s a weird and mixed menu of books, but nothing is better to caress your soul (at least your pour soul working in academia). - The reading’n’cursing-out-loud
Be honest – I can’t be the only one. Sometimes we read papers that are so BAD – but still, they were published, excruciatingly cited and read and we have to read them as well because we are writing on new project ideas, grant proposals, … You know this sort of papers and books, I know it. I tend to curse in a uttering voice when getting annoyed by this kind of readings. Maybe it was the long time at my homeoffice, where no-one xould hear me and now I can’t get rid of this habit anymore. - The emergency-chocolate in my desk
I am not ashamed of it. I might have a problem, yes. But sometimes all you need is chocolate.
Next to all the weird habits, I sometimes loose track of time – I even forgot to blog. Seems like the postdoc-life is a little bit tougher on my time management than my phd-life. (Yes, I know, who would have thought… *sarcasm off)
There are a lot of new things to think about, to process and to accept. I am not done with it. Actually, I am still surprised. Half a year postdoc and I am feeling like an imposter. Oh, wait… we don’t do that here. I earned that and I know my stuff. New things, new challenges, new ways. New adventures. New habits. 😉 We will get through it.
There are some new posts in preparation – your epigrammetrists are busy as usual. Sarah will finish her thesis soon, I am diving into new adventures and projects. Due to time issues – and because we need our weekends and to take care of our mental health and our body – we will take a step back from blogging every week. You will hear from us now twice a month. 🙂 Thanks for your support and for reading us!
All the best
Astrid
OpenEdition suggests that you cite this post as follows:
Astrid Schmölzer (May 9, 2021). Weird habits for productive work – part II. Epigrammetry. Retrieved November 3, 2024 from https://doi.org/10.58079/og7q