If you’re an academic in the UK right now, you’re probably marking. Or putting off marking.  Or talking to anyone who’ll listen about how you’re dying from marking.

You blinked and it was mid-August. The term had wrung you out like one of those blue rag dishcloths, so you spent the first three weeks in a dark room…

It’s 9 pm and I’m still working. That’s rule number one broken: I don’t work in the evenings. But here I am, marking. It’s rare.

You’re working six days a week, checking emails in the evenings and on weekends, because the admin pile-up just won’t stop. When it comes to admin overload in academia, two forces drive the problem.

You say “yes” to another panel invitation and immediately wonder if there’s a German word for deep existential regret with a professional smile. You don’t really have time. But you’re flattered. And you don’t want to let anyone down.

There’s a particular kind of quiet tragedy in academia: not the big headlines about REF or funding cuts or strike action (though those matter, of course), but the small, daily loss of what academics were actually trained to do—produce knowledge.

You sit down to do deep work—write a paper, prep a lecture, plan your research.

But before you know it, your fingers are on autopilot.

📩 Inbox. Refresh. Scroll. Click.

You lack boundaries around your inbox, and this is one of the top reasons that you are a flustered professor who only seems to have one mode: spread thin. You open your email inbox for a quick check—maybe just to confirm a module code, or see what time a meeting starts, fast-forward two hours, and...

You’re holding back on publishing your best ideas because theory feels scary to you. That’s the truth I’ve learned from clients, writing groups, and, if I’m honest, my own experience in academia.

You’ve got a brilliant idea—maybe even five.  But nothing’s happening.  I’m talking about the ground-breaking research centre, the important article, or the amazing life-changing impact project. 

Women in academia, it's time to do the one thing you always skip: Celebrate Yourself… as we wrap up 2024 with my annual online planning party (it's free to attend).

At a work Christmas party, I met a woman who exuded confidence and ease, which surprised me—until I realised she wasn’t an academic but worked in HR. It got me thinking…

Boundaries are something many of us socialised as women struggle with (we have to be helpful and nice, right?). However, clear boundaries are essential for maintaining well-being and protecting against burnout.

Does your brain run a mile a minute to the extent that it feels really hard to switch it off? And when you try, it wants to continue its train of thought? If this is you, read on…

We all know that fear of missing out—FOMO—can drive us to say yes to too much.  FOMO sneaks into almost every corner of academic life...

Let's be clear: you don't need to do it all to succeed in academia. In fact, doing everything is precisely what will hold you back...

Here's quick email hacks I use to reduce overwhelm whilst catching the important stuff...

Read on to find out eight ways your people-pleasing is getting in the way of your goals!

Have you ever felt really awful after getting a rejection or a perceived failure? Then, keep reading.