Top 10 Tips to Thrive During Crunch Time

This week is the last week of my semester and like most academics, the end of the semester is an incredibly busy and stressful time! My classes are coming to a close, my students are hysterical, my colleagues are cranky, and deadlines are looming. In short, it's crunch time!

The End-of-Semester Crunch
If you're already clear about your plan to get from this moment to the end of your semester: CONGRATULATIONS!
But if you are like me, you may be feeling concerned about how all the grading, meetings, holiday parties, and writing deadlines will get completed without a meltdown. Typically, I can juggle all the balls in the air during a regular work-week, but the end of the semester always brings a few flaming objects into the mix. Because I believe that stressful times call for unique coping strategies, I have collected the wisdom of some of my mentors about how to maintain balance and sanity during the end of semester crunch. I hope you find these ideas as useful as I have over the past few years.

Top 10 Tips for Thriving During Crunch Time

Tip #1: Clearly communicate to others that it is crunch time

Let those who live with you and/or are impacted by your behavior know that the next week (or two) will be difficult, assure them that it's a finite period of time, and let them know you appreciate their support and understanding. I find that people are willing to assist me as long as I communicate my needs ahead of time.

Tip #2: Lower your standards in non-essential areas of life
I'm what's known as a "neat-freak" but during crunch time, I give myself permission to be a slob. It's okay because it's only one week. I love to eat out, but during crunch time, I'm okay with peanut butter and pickle sandwiches because I don't' have time for anything else. And that's okay because it's only one week of the semester. I sleep 9 hours per night. During crunch time, I sleep 9 hours per night! That's because sleep is not negotiable for me. The point is to ask yourself: what can I let slide a bit for the next week (or two) without negative consequences?

Tip #3: Ruthlessly assess what grading ACTUALLY needs to get done
Many students do not read comments that are given on final papers and projects. I ask my students to indicate if they want me to write comments on their final papers. Fewer than 10% request the comments and I save hours of grading that would never have been read, while concentrating my comments on the students who genuinely want feedback and will benefit from it.

Tip #4: Say NO to EVERY SERVICE REQUEST from now until the end of the semester
When it's crunch time, the worst thing you can do is to take on additional responsibilities. Refer back to "The N-Word" and "Just Say No" Monday Motivators if you need ideas on how to say NO!

Tip #5: Every day needs a plan
Use your Sunday Meeting this week to develop a task list and map each of your tasks onto a specific time slot on your calendar. If you don't have enough time for the tasks just delegate them or let them go. Then each morning, spend two minutes reviewing the items you need to complete for that day. This will keep you focused and confident that the truly important things will get done.

Tip #6: Write for 30-60 minutes each day
When we feel crunched for time, the first thing we are ready to sacrifice is our daily writing time. This semester, put yourself, your future, and your daily writing time into the non-negotiable category. There are other ways to be efficient than eliminating the one activity that is central to your promotion, tenure, and mobility.

Tip #7: Only check e-mail 1 time per day (max)
E-mail begets e-mail. When you have little time, one of the least effective ways to spend it is writing e-mail. I'm only able to restrict my e-mail to once-a-day during crunch periods. But for one week, it's unlikely to cause a crisis and typically works out just fine.

Tip #8: Sign off all listserv's until January
If you subscribe to any listserv's, sign off until the new year. Most people sign off during the holidays, so why not do so now? Listserv's create lots of e-mail in your in-box and very little is critical information that you can't do without between now and January.

Tip #9: Take Care of Your Body
Exercise reduces stress. When I don't have time to go to the gym, I take the stairs in my building, walk a few laps around the block at lunch, or just having extra energetic sex with my husband. Be creative! Whatever you need to do to get your heart rate up and your body moving will benefit you during crunch time. If you need stress relieving ideas, see the "How do you relieve stress?" thread on the discussion forums for some great ideas.

Tip #10: End Every Day With Gratitude and a Treat!
As each day comes to a close, take a moment to thank the universe for all that went well and affirm that everything in your life is working for your highest good. I insist on a treat every day during crunch time because I complete a huge amount of work in such a short period of time! If you need ideas for treats, check the discussion forum thread: "How Do You Treat Yourself?"

This Week's Challenge
As we head into crunch time, I challenge you to:

• Acknowledge that the end of the semester is a stressful time
• Pro-actively create strategies to manage the stress
  
• If you've never tried a Sunday Meeting, go ahead and give it a shot!
• Spend two minutes at the beginning of each day reviewing your daily plan and spend two minutes at the end of each day in gratitude for all the things you accomplished
  
• Write every day this week for 30-60 minutes
• Say "NO" with confidence and grace
• Try visiting the discussion forum for some comfort, laughter, support, and community during these stressful times and/or join the December Writing Challenge.
  
• If you're finding yourself at the end of another semester without any significant progress on your writing projects, consider signing up TODAY for the last tele-workshop of the semester Writing, Procrastination, and Resistance: How to Identify Your Funk and Move Through it. The workshop is this Tuesday night, so if you've been telling yourself that you'll register later, please do so today.

Since this is my last week of classes, this is the last Monday Motivator for 2009. I'll be back in January and the theme for the Spring Semester will be The Most Common Mistakes New Faculty Make & How to Avoid Them. I want to thank everyone for your generous support and kind e-mails throughout the term. I continue to be inspired by all the positive changes taking place in your lives and deeply grateful for your willingness to share your struggles and celebrations with me. I hope that the Winter Break brings each of you a successful conclusion to your semester, lots of well-deserved rest, and tremendous holiday joy!

Peace and Productivity,

Kerry Ann Rockquemore, PhD
Associate Professor of African American Studies & Sociology
University of Illinois at Chicago
Phone: 773-285-4901
E-Mail: KerryAnn@NewFacultySuccess.com
Web: www.NewFacultySuccess.com
Blog: NewFacultySuccess.blogspot.com
Twitter: www.twitter.com/divaprof