Ruth and Claire discuss techniques for avoiding Burn Out. Claire notes how helpful it is to remember all the things she likes about her job. Ruth seeks inspiration to counter the feeling of burn out: through music or learning about awesome teaching techniques people are doing. Claire is working on looking ahead on the calendar to avoid tasks piling up: noting when there will be more grading or more committee work, etc, and planning for those things not to happen at the same time. Ruth struggles with getting breaks.

Ruth and Claire discuss Career Guidance: how to best help students along their career paths. Ruth finds it helpful to chat a lot with students; during those conversations, career information comes up naturally. Claire finds it works to forward internship opportunities to her whole class, including a message at the top about why she thought it might be relevant to them. Ruth is struggling with showcasing career paths beyond the academic lens. Similarly, Claire is working on supporting students on non-academic routes.

Ruth and Claire discuss Challenging Student Interactions. When students are stressed about being behind with classwork, Claire finds it helpful to work together with them to develop a plan to get back on track. Ruth finds that asking ‘are you ok?’ can work to defuse confrontational student interactions. Claire is working on managing her own mindset when students are confrontational and not taking it personally: perhaps the student is simply having a bad day. Ruth is working on not being afraid of angry students.

Claire mentioned: Gather Town

Ruth and Claire reflect on a Year of Podcasting. Ruth has been so excited about making connections with people who listen to the podcast, she also appreciates having a time capsule of this strange year. Claire found the episode on Essentialism very impactful and brings us back to stories about stealing chickens. Ruth would like to build our community of listeners. Claire would love to record more interviews and particularly would love listener suggestions for people to interview!

Claire mentioned Derek Sivers and Essentialism

Ruth and Claire discuss Work/Life Balance. Ruth really appreciates having time to reflect during break. Claire likes to have scheduled work and non-work time but reminds us that work/life balance is not always about minimizing work. Ruth is working on maintaining balance while stressed. Claire is working on leaving work at the desk.

Claire mentioned Jen Sincero: https://jensincero.com/

Ruth and Claire discuss Email Etiquette. Claire is leading by example and writing emails to students with the features she values, such as a proper salutation, not expecting emails on weekends or in the evening, and being clear what reply is expected. When introducing students to college, Ruth helps students write politely by sharing tips directly. Claire is working on managing her expectations of how fast students reply. Ruth is working on creating filters and labels to organize her inbox.

Claire mentioned Ten percent happier by Dan Harris: https://www.tenpercent.com/dan-harris-books.

Ruth mentioned Conference for Undergraduate Women in Physics: https://www.aps.org/programs/women/cuwip/.

Ruth mentioned Songteller: https://dollyparton.com/life-and-career/books/dolly-parton-songteller-my-life-in-lyrics/17644.

Ruth and Claire discuss Writing Papers. Claire finds the process of writing a paper can help to crystallize her ideas. Ruth has had success with a student who was motivated to write a paper for the peer reviewed on campus journal. Claire is working on arranging time for the immersive process of writing a paper. Ruth is struggling with knowing when you have enough material for a paper.

Claire mentioned The End of Stress by Don Joseph Goewey: https://g.co/kgs/eUSWzq

Ruth and Claire reflect on their first full semester teaching virtually. Claire found it worked well to have live lectures on Zoom; she enjoyed the opportunity to have new content interspersed with interaction and questions. Ruth found her live tutorial/activity section similarly effective. Claire is working on enhancing student interactions by using a video platform: Gather.town Ruth would like to reduce repetitive email questions by making use of a discussion forum next semester.

Ruth and Claire are excited to answer questions from listeners this week. Stephan asks about setting and engaging with goals; Mossy raises the question of grading group work; Michael asks how we address racism in our disciplines. Send us your questions! [email protected]

Claire mentioned The End of Stress by Don Joseph Goewey: https://g.co/kgs/eUSWzq

Ruth and Claire discuss Virtual Office Hours. Ruth found it worked well to have a “go to office hours” assignment to motivate attendance. Claire is excited to use the Waiting Room in Zoom to facilitate private conversations, and finds it works even better than closing a physical office door! Ruth is working on making sure everyone is contributing and not just lurking to get answers to the homework. Claire is working on making office hours welcoming for students - and on remembering to go to her office hours.

Ruth mentioned Dolly Parton’s America: https://www.wnycstudios.org/podcasts/dolly-partons-america