This is a guest blog post for PhDtalk as part of a series on academic schedules. I was asked for “a narrative about how a (normal) day/week
in your life looks like, and how you combine research / writing /
teaching (if any) and other activities on a regular basis, and how
(or if) you manage to squeeze in some time for yourself as well.” Original post can be found here.
The President of the United States doesn't decide what to wear or eat every day. Humans have a
limited capacity to make decisions.
Once the quota is reached, there has to be a rest period before being
able to make more decisions or it starts to feel physically draining.
The POTUS spends his day making important, far-reaching decisions.
There's no point in waste precious energy making small ones.
I keep this in mind when devising my daily and weekly schedules.
Having a routine keeps my mind free for
the things that matter, and still ensures that everything gets done. I
optimized my morning routine by writing down everything I wanted to
accomplish before leaving the house, then put those things in an order
that made sense. A few key points: I don't look at my phone before
getting out of bed. I'm a graduate student. No email is so important
that it can't wait a few hours. Looking at my phone makes me laze about
too long. Secondly, I do a small amount of physical activity as soon as I
roll out of bed. This might be a few yoga poses or a set of pushups.
Something short and fast to get blood flowing and let me body know I'm
up.
Mornings are my golden time. I can get more quality work done
before 9am than the rest of the day combined. I recently started
harnessing this by going to school later. Once I'm ready for the day, I
spend about an hour (7:30-8:30am) writing, or working on one of my side
projects. If I go into the lab this early, there's almost always
something to distract me.
Staying home, I have a comfortable setup, with no one to interrupt me.
My
morning hour of productivity is broken up by day. The night
before when I'm setting my to-do list, I decide what will be the
priority the next morning. It's usually one of the following:
- writing: blog post, homework, abstract, manuscript, whatever is in the pipeline
- policy work: I'm starting a student science policy group. This is when I research speakers, write emails, plan meetings, etc
- networking: send emails, research people I want to meet, career paths I'm considering, etc
- GSS: another student group I'm part of at school. During this time I plan events, write emails, read over meeting minutes
- reading/lit search: I have a never end list of papers I'm trying to read. I try to get through a few during this time.
These categories get attended to once a week, or less if nothing is
needed. The default is always writing. Even if I have no deadlines, I
always have a handful of blog posts or writing exercises I'm working on
to improve my writing.
I live and die by my calendar and a master to-do list. I carry a
notebook everywhere and continually jot down ideas, and things I need to
do. I have 30 minutes blocked off at the end of each day where I go
through that notebook and transfer things to my to-do list and calendar.
I don't necessarily get to everything on my calendar, but if it's not
on the calendar, then it definitely doesn't get done.
Let's start with the long-view and work backwards:
Five Year Plan
I have a five year plan. It's hilariously optimistic. I would like to
graduate quickly. If there's any chance of that happening, there are
many things needed to stay on track. These miles stones are set on this
five year plan. They get reviewed and revised about once a month to make
sure I'm not missing any big deadlines.
Monthly
Near the end of every month, I set goals for the upcoming month. I look
at my five-year plan and my previous month's goals and think about what I
need to accomplish to move forward. These might be academic (narrow
topic for review article), social (host a dinner party), health-related
(do 10 pushups every day) or something else entirely. I then set time
aside in my calendar to accomplish these.
Weekly
Every Friday afternoon, I set my schedule for the following week. I look
at my to-do list, and block time out for each item. To-do lists are
great, but without setting aside actual time to finish things, I never
seem to get around to them. This also gives me a chance to be aware of
any upcoming meetings I need to prepare for, exams coming up, or similar
obligations.
Daily
Before bed I review the next day's schedule. I change or prepare things as needed.
Everything I do goes on the calendar, including exercise, grocery
shopping, cleaning, studying, and time with friends. I use one color for
social activities, one for lab work, and one for school work. When I'm
planning experiments in the lab, I block out time to prepare and set up,
time to actually run the experiment, and time to analyze the data. I
block out time for classwork, and time to review lectures. I even have a
daily reminder to leave time for lunch every day.
I have a super-packed, color-coded, scheduled-to-the15-minute-increment calendar.
Here's an important note:
My precise schedule doesn't always go as planned.
I'm still horrible at estimating how much time something will take.
However, I find it invaluable for making sure I get the important things
done. It's hard to tell how much you've taken on until you start
planning out the specifics. My calendar had been a valuable tool for
letting me know when to say no to new obligations.
Sleep, nutrition, and exercise are all very high on my priority list.
They might slip for a week before a deadline, but being healthy and
happy are more important to me than anything else. My calendar helps me
to not take on too much, and to lead a happy and productive life.