Faculty life and "hidden" work

Forbes just released this article about "hidden work" within our faculty life -- a familiar concept as this blog has often shared the hours of at-home work, the lost pockets of time in meetings, and the often unseen elements of this career. Thank you, Forbes! This career can be one where those hidden work hours become stifling and our stress levels can really spike just when someone outside academia mentions how our schedules "must be nice" - it seems to happen most often in summer or on a "break" from teaching.

Is it just me, or do we often find ourselves working into the wee hours sneaking time to grade around other, non-work events, logging into the email to answer students questions when we sit in meetings. How often do we find that the work we have to accomplish is done on a laptop as we try not to fall asleep in bed? Surely, I am not the only faculty member attempting to milk more out of our 24 hours each day than is humanly possible.

Explore the Forbes article and consider your hidden work...and any strategies you have implemented to protect the way the work creeps into our lives.

Consider also:
Professional Development - On A Budget!, Summer 2012
Tenure, Retention, Binders, and Budgets - Oh My!, Summer 2011
Make the Most of Your Summer, Summer 2013
The Stages of Spring Break, April 2011
Service: Who Participates?, March 2010

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