Writing
today’s post, I am acutely aware of how often I failed in my struggle to
achieve balance in the various requirements of a new tenure-track job:
teaching, research, and service (and in some cases, outreach or
administration). So LHB readers, you might want to take any advice offered here
with a snicker or a grain of salt. I do hope that my struggles might result in
some useful insights for those of you facing a similar challenge.
I started
my job teaching at Auburn in the fall of 2010.
My first semester involved two large (200 students in each) sections of
World History I (from the dawn of time to the 18th century!) and a 13-student
graduate seminar in Southern History.
Prior to starting my position, my independent teaching experience
consisted of a 9-student summer U.S. survey and a 7-student senior writing
seminar in my research area, both at Duke.
To say I
was unprepared for what awaited me in my new job is an understatement. My first
semester was crushing—I was nervous, overwhelmed, out of my league. My research
and writing seemed like a distant memory. My manuscript was one final,
impossibly large task on my never-ending to-do list. I never forgot about it,
but I also never got around to doing much research or writing. Luckily Auburn
kept my service load pretty light. I was on one department committee, but it
didn’t require much time.
I have no
magic solution to the craziness of the first year of teaching. I do have a few
words of advice that I followed as best I could. Much of this advice still
applies to my regular challenges of balancing my workload.
My first
point could (and should!) be repeated in all of my posts on the struggle to
achieve any type of balance. First and foremost, be willing to forgive yourself
and let things go when you fall short of your expectations. Even the people who
seem the most on top of things sometimes—or often—miss the mark. Lawyers,
professors, and grad students are usually highly motivated people. But the
tenure-track asks a lot of new professors, and sometimes there just aren’t
enough hours in the day to do it all. Dwelling on what you have not managed to
accomplish or what you wish you had done does you no good. Forgiveness and
moving on are how I get through most of my days.
A strong
support system is another element that allowed me to adjust to the new faculty
workload. I was fortunate enough to start my job at the same time as another history
faculty member. We became fast friends. We spent many late nights in the office
together, and made plenty of fast food runs as we logged long hours to get the
lectures written, the reading done, and the emails answered. She has remained a
source of advice, encouragement, and commiseration over the years, as our
workloads have only gotten heavier.
If you
don’t make that kind of instant connection in your department—or even if you
do—finding people outside of your department is helpful, too. Look for
opportunities to mingle with other faculty and make new connections. Orientation,
college/school functions, or groups connected to particular hobbies or
interests can all help one meet faculty outside of your department. My partner
Kevin was also a big help with my home workload, as the dishes and laundry
piled up. He continues to provide enormous support, both with housework and
also listening and helping me sort out my challenges. Like many academics, I
now have family and friends spread all over the country. Regular phone calls to
friends and family members can be a huge help in coping with the stress of the
first year.
Here’s
some advice I wish I had followed: when you start teaching, less is more. Less
reading can still make for great discussion. Shorter writing assignments allow
for more quality feedback and focus on skill practice for your students. Keep lectures to outlines, unless you’re
teaching something completely outside of your comfort zone, as many of us do
sometimes. You don’t have to be great at all of it right away. Rome wasn’t
built in a day, and neither is an amazing teacher. There will be hiccups along
the way. Your best bet is to innovate and experiment a little at a time to see
what works best in your new job with a new population of students. For me, teaching is always about
experimenting and being open to adjustments.
Seek
advice from senior colleagues when you can. At Auburn, our department has a
strong tradition of sharing syllabi for ideas and regularly discussing teaching
issues as they arise. Finding a trusted colleague who has been there a while to
approach with questions is an invaluable asset. Our department does not have a
formal mentoring program for new faculty, but if possible, seek out these kinds
of opportunities to learn from others’ experiences and get to know the
department culture.
I have
read lots of advice about making time for research. This advice includes scheduling regular
research and writing time, getting up early to write, and prioritizing writing
before you begin you class prep and meetings.
I’ve never been great about this balance, but I continue to try. (More
on some of my strategies in the next post.) One of my goals for 2018 is to make
regular time every week for research and writing, even if it’s not a lot of
time. No guarantee that I’ll be able to make that a reality. But I do believe
that the best practice for balancing writing with a heavy teaching load is to
make it a regular part of your schedule. A bit more on this after the jump break.
The advice
for law faculty or people working at other universities is likely different
than my experience. Here at Auburn we fully expect the first year to be lost to
research and writing time as new faculty write lectures and adjust to teaching. Losing a year of research and writing, as I
did and many new teachers do, makes it vital to get going during breaks and in
subsequent years.
The task
of making time for writing only got more interesting for me after my first
year. In the summer of 2011, we welcomed my daughter Olivia. I spent much of my
first year of teaching pregnant. In my next post, I will discuss the challenges
of being a parent and an academic. The balancing act of research, writing,
service, and other responsibilities at work is always complicated by our
personal lives and responsibilities—whatever they may be. For me, the main
responsibilities soon became my daughter and her baby brother Alex, who arrived
two weeks after I sent in my first full book manuscript submission.
