Your Career: How to Stop Fixating on Academic Disappointments

The thing holding you back may be all the self-defeating talk about your own research abilities. ADVERTISEMENT [Your Career Logo]( Did someone forward you this newsletter? [Sign up free]( to receive your own copy. The thing holding you back may be all the self-defeating talk about your own research abilities. In academe, beating yourself up about your scholarly progress (“I’ve failed to get anything done once again”) is almost embedded in the culture and may even feel instinctive to you at this point. It’s a bad habit that can leave you feeling exhausted at the end of a day. Here’s a different approach: Try stating the same facts, but this time, use entirely value-neutral language. What’s stopping you from being a robot for a second and just deciding that value judgments are irrelevant? Because they are. This isn’t about toxic positivity. Nobody is making anyone smile. Just consider being a little more impartial about your own work: - Don’t say: “I’ve failed to get anything done once again.” Say: “Tasks X, Y, and Z are now on my schedule for the following week.” - Don’t say: “I’m behind.” Say: “Since tasks X, Y, and Z have been rescheduled, tasks Alpha, Beta, and Gamma may need to be shuffled around.” Will this actually help you finish the work? Possibly not directly, but it will certainly remove one of the obstacles. Continue reading: “[Beating Yourself Up Is Labor But It’s Not Work]( by Rebecca Schuman Share your suggestions for the newsletter with Denise Magner, an editor at The Chronicle, at denise.magner@chronicle.com. If you’d like to opt out, you can log in to our website and [manage your newsletter preferences here](. ADVERTISEMENT REGISTER NOW [Join us January 9-27]( for a virtual professional development program on overcoming the challenges of the department chair role and creating a strategic vision for individual and departmental growth. [Reserve your spot today!]( Latest Career Advice, Opinion, and News ADVICE [Tenure and the Arrival Fallacy]( By Rebecca Mason [STORY IMAGE]( Wasn’t tenure the Holy Grail of academe? I had made it. Why wasn’t I overjoyed? ADVERTISEMENT ADVICE [Ask the Chair: ‘I’ve Never Been a Boss Before’]( By Kevin Dettmar [STORY IMAGE]( A new chair seeks advice on how to be an effective supervisor of department staff members. LEADERSHIP [Ben Sasse’s Contract at Florida’s Flagship Has Lots of Perks. But Not Tenure.]( By Jack Stripling [STORY IMAGE]( Breaking from custom for a major research university, UF won’t bestow the coveted faculty status (just yet) on the Nebraska senator. ACADEMIC PUBLISHING [The Scholarly Skill Almost No One Is Teaching]( By Sylvia Goodman [STORY IMAGE]( A distinct lack of training in peer review has worsened the crisis in academic publishing. CAMPUS SAFETY [When a Student Seems Violent, Colleges Turn to Threat-Assessment Teams. What Are They?]( By Kate Hidalgo Bellows [STORY IMAGE]( University of Virginia officials had received a report about the alleged gunman who is suspected of killing three students. CLASSROOM COMPASSION [The Deadline Dilemma]( By Carolyn Kuimelis [STORY IMAGE]( When it comes to course assignments, how much flexibility is too much? FROM THE CHRONICLE STORE [Building a Faculty That Flourishes]( [Building a Faculty That Flourishes]( Colleges and universities cannot be successful without vibrant and engaged faculties. Now is the time to figure out sustainable ways to recruit, support, and diversify the faculty. [Order your copy today.]( What we’re reading. Here’s more on career issues and trends from around the web. See something we should include? [Let me know](mailto:denise.magner@chronicle.com?subject=Your Career feedback). - [Advice]( from University Affairs on “how to manage your graduate student.” - An essay in the Harvard Business Review explores “[how to respond]( when someone you supervise confides in you about a mental-health problem. - Two accounts in The New York Times on labor strikes — by academic employees [in California]( and by adjuncts at [the New School]( and its Parsons School of Design, in New York. More Career Resources NEWS [How Much Are Private-College Presidents Paid?]( [STORY IMAGE]( Base pay, bonuses and benefits for 265 chief executives at private colleges with expenditures of $100-million or more. DATA [How Much Are Public-College Presidents Paid?]( [STORY IMAGE]( Base pay, bonuses, and benefits for 196 chief executives at public doctoral universities and systems in 2021. NEWS [Compare the States]( By Ben Myers and Sandhya Kambhampati [STORY IMAGE]( Explore data on more than 80 measures to see how your state is doing in relation to others on faculty pay, student aid, and more. ADVICE [Advice Finder]( [STORY IMAGE]( Want to advance your career? Improve your institution? Our academic experts have guidance for you, and we’ve made it easy to find. JOB OPPORTUNITIES [Multiple Positions]( Towson University [Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs]( Pace University [Associate Professor, or Assistant Professor Applied Exercise Science (AES) program]( The School of Kinesiology at the University of Michigan [Multiple Positions]( Towson University [Multiple Positions]( Towson University [Faculty Openings 2023-24]( Southern Methodist University [Search other jobs.]( NEWSLETTER FEEDBACK [Please let us know what you thought of today's newsletter in this three-question survey](. This newsletter was sent to {EMAIL}. 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