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When Everything's On Fire: Emergency Productivity Triage
You know that feeling when you walk into your office and immediately want to walk right back out? When just looking at your desk gives you chest palpitations? When your email notifications sound like a smoke alarm that won't quit? This isn't the time for elaborate productivity systems or color-coded organizational schemes. When everything's urgent, you need emergency triage. You need tools that work fast, cut through the chaos, and give you immediate breathing room.

Megan J. Hall, Ph.D.
3 days ago4 min read


The Magic Bag Method: Why Overwhelmed Overachievers Need a Toolkit
If you're reading this, chances are you're drowning in responsibilities. We need fast, practical solutions for actual problems—our own version of the magic bag, ready for deployment when chaos strikes.

Megan J. Hall, Ph.D.
Jul 14 min read


How I Finally Finished My Book Draft (Without Stress Hives or All-Nighters)
Last Friday at 5:47 PM, I typed the final period on the last sentence of my academic book draft. No fanfare, no confetti cannons—just me, my laptop, and a quiet sense of "Holy cow, I actually did it."

Megan J. Hall, Ph.D.
Jun 234 min read


Relaxation is not a luxury
An important reminder from high achiever Susan L. Taylor for we fellow high achievers: relaxation is not a luxury. If you don't make time to recuperate, you will burn out. Please don't do that to yourself. You're worth taking care of!

Megan J. Hall, Ph.D.
Jun 91 min read


Are Routines Killing You?
If I say the word “routine” to a group of people, you can bet there will be two kinds of reactions: a visceral shudder, and a smiling nod. Why? Well, I would say it’s because that word means very different things to these two groups. And it’s such a polarizing word that really I haven’t seen a reaction anywhere in the middle. No “meh, a routine.” Just either a screeching “I hate routines!” or a beaming “Boy, I love routines!"

Megan J. Hall, Ph.D.
Jun 22 min read


Do you know about the NCFDD?
The National Center for Faculty Development and Diversity (NCFDD) was founded in 2010. Their mission? They provide workshops, tools, mentoring, buddy networks, and more to faculty, graduate students, and postdocs for success in the academic world. I’ve been on their mailing list for years now, from the beginning or very near it, and I am consistently impressed by the quality of their offerings. If you need one-on-one support as well, get in touch with me!

Megan J. Hall, Ph.D.
May 262 min read


Why is writing so easy to procrastinate?
Procrastination often happens when a task feels too big or ambiguous. Writers tend to think things like "today I need to write" or "I want to make some progress today." Writing and progress are vague concepts that make for hard starting points. Then our inner resistance fires up, making it even more daunting! Writing mega-charges that resistance. It's so personal, exposing our deepest selves.

Megan J. Hall, Ph.D.
May 192 min read


The Energetic Overwhelm of Spring
Love spring but also feel suspiciously overwhelmed? Me too. I think D.H. Lawrence has some answers for us on the energetic overwhelm of spring.

Megan J. Hall, Ph.D.
May 61 min read


Making Progress When You Have No Time
When time feels impossibly scarce, I've found that the "15-minute solution" can be transformative. The concept is simple: commit to just 15 minutes of focused work on a daunting task. No matter how overwhelming your project seems, anyone can endure 15 minutes. What makes this approach powerful isn't just the time management aspect—it's the psychological shift that occurs once you begin.

Megan J. Hall, Ph.D.
Apr 291 min read


The Scariest Moment...
For my writers—and aspiring writers—out there: a vital reminder for us from Stephen King, from his On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft.

Megan J. Hall, Ph.D.
Apr 221 min read


The To-Do List: An Anchor, not an Anchor Chain
I've had two conversations about to-do lists this week that got me pondering how easy it is to overthink these simple productivity tools.

Megan J. Hall, Ph.D.
Apr 142 min read


The GPS System: My Secret Weapon for Beating Overwhelm!
Spring is just around the corner (at least where I live). I'm also excited to share that the recording of my recent Barbara Sher...

Megan J. Hall, Ph.D.
Mar 111 min read


I am Thankful for One More Thing
Despite the whirlwind of daily life and a boatload of professional responsibilities, I want to take a moment this week to express my...

Megan J. Hall, Ph.D.
Nov 25, 20241 min read


What do you want?
What brought you here to my blog? Maybe you clicked through from a social site, or maybe you arrived directly by searching or using the...

Megan J. Hall, Ph.D.
Nov 18, 20241 min read


I Let AI Write a Post For Me
As I was working on draft posts for my blog, I noticed a new tool in Wix, the AI Post Creator. Unless you've been living on a desert...

Megan J. Hall, Ph.D.
Nov 11, 20245 min read



Megan J. Hall, Ph.D.
Nov 4, 20240 min read


The Good-Enough To-Do List
It hit me this week that to-do lists, when properly fed and managed, can be helpful tools. Just keep it "good enough."

Megan J. Hall, Ph.D.
Sep 30, 20243 min read


Be Yourself—Everyone Else is Taken
Honoring your uniqueness is at the heart of what I write and the advice I give.

Megan J. Hall, Ph.D.
Sep 23, 20242 min read


Make Time to Slow Down
Though this post will, I hope, be helpful for everyone, it's written particularly with highly sensitive readers in mind. Especially...

Megan J. Hall, Ph.D.
Sep 16, 20242 min read


I don't need more time; I need a deadline!
So goes the saying (in various forms) attributed to Duke Ellington, twentieth-century jazz legend. I've always worked faster under a...

Megan J. Hall, Ph.D.
Sep 9, 20242 min read
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