A few accountability methods

These are a collection of methods I use to help myself overcome resistance and make progress towards my small and large goals.

In September 2020 I borrowed a new technique from a friend: to overcome lack of motivation, invite someone to a zoom with no video and little sound, and use the chat function to write goals and report on progress. In fact, I now have several “writing times” on my calendar every week with different groups, some that include a 5-minute visual check in & goal setting at beginning and end, and some that are revolving doors where any writing time is celebrated in the chat.

Another trick I use periodically is the NCFDD 14-day writing challenge. As I said in October 2020, I use it to aim to accomplish 30 minutes towards one small part of a writing project, often one long-procrastinated. The value is that these 30 minutes get logged daily and the project gets mentally moved up the priority list. That accountability and self-competition seems to be a great mix for me.

In January 2021, I reminded myself of the importance of setting achievable goals that are under my control: Not papers in press but under review. Or even sent to coauthors (because you can’t control coauthor speeds). Or sometimes: opening a document and re-reading it.

I love the concept of the pomodoro technique for productivity but pragmatically, it serves me best as a trick to get started. Permission to stop is fine, but the prioritizing and the starting is the hard part for me. This interview description of an anthropologist’s writing process sounds enviable. It does make me think that I could think about days where I have breaks between meetings as a pomodoro session. Here’s a pomodoro app, but with trees.