Every academic I coach has a version of The Pile. The unread emails. The admin tasks you meant to “just quickly” do. The forms. The approvals. The Moodle updates.

I was speaking with a prospective client recently during a consultation (any of you can book one of these for free btw, here) and we were laughing about the emails that begin with “just a gentle nudge…”

It happens to the best of us. We start the day with good intentions.  Make a bit of progress on that article, maybe finish that grant section, get on top of the admin backlog…

You don’t just like things done well. You like them done right. Your way. On time. With proper references and perfectly indented bullet points.

If your inbox were a house, it would be featured on Britain’s Biggest Hoarders.  Mouldy old job alerts. A festering email from your mentor that you meant to reply to 18 months ago.

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...

How many times today have you told yourself I have to? It sounds like a small thing, but the words "I have to" make you feel powerless. They trap you in a victim mentality, reinforcing the idea that you have no control over your work or your time.

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