Showing posts with label mindfulness. Show all posts
The Benefits of Regret
I can't believe it's already the end of December. It seems this past year was both unending and insanely short. (Or is that just me?) I introduced the blog's theme of motivation in March and--while it hasn't been a full year--it seems fitting to look back at that theme and start planning for 2022. (It will probably be March again before I'm able to write 2022 without either first writing 2021 or feeling the need to double-check that I'm not making up a year).
My WriteCast cohost, Claire Helakoski, will be posting an episode focused on SMARTER goals at the beginning of next month and the discussion we had got me thinking about how we can use reflection--as well as careful planning for the future--to ensure we move forward in our most important goals. In particular, I'm wondering if there's a way to reframe supposed 'failures' and regrets so they can propel us in a positive way rather than holding us back.
Much research has been done on the ways thoughts impact reality. As productivity coach Michael Hyatt (2021) put it, "we tend to experience what we expect...our success ultimately depends on our ability to tell the difference between reality and the story we are telling ourselves...when we believe we can't, we don't. The difference is all in our heads" (p. 18). Similarly, author Stewart Stafford argued, "the possible is just the impossible that we've come to accept" (QuotesLyfe.com). Basically, how we frame things in our own minds is important.
This is why I think it would be a good idea to (re)frame how we might usually think about our past mistakes, regrets, and anything we might consider a failure. Some of my favorite motivational quotes run along the lines of, 'failures are actually opportunities for learning' but at times this can seem cliché or flippant. Personally, I find these quotes inspiring in general, but less helpful in times I find myself overthinking things I've done or avoided doing. If you're like me, hearing "don't think about pink elephants" instantly conjures images of those animated "heffalumps" from "Winnie the Pooh and the Very Blustery Day" (or some other version of elephants in shades of faded red). And quotes like "we learn from failure, not from success", at a time when I'm overthinking, read as platitudes rather than sound advice (Stoker, 2000, p. 103).
So, here's my suggestion as we move into another new year: allow yourself to have and think about your regrets from 2021 (or earlier). Ask yourself what it is about those experiences you find most difficult to stop thinking about. Doing so could help you solidify an action plan for if and when you encounter similar situations in the future.
I hope this is helpful in allowing you to move positively into this next year. Let me know your thoughts on this post and others in the comments! What kind of posts would you like to see in 2022? Thanks for reading--see you next year! :)
References
Hyatt, M. (2021). Your best year ever. Michael Hyatt & Company, Inc.
Landman, J. (1993). Regret: The persistence of the possible. Oxford University Press.
QuoteLyfes.com. (n.d.) Steward Stafford quotes. https://www.quoteslyfe.com/quote/The-possible-is-just-the-impossible-that-258026
Roese, N. J., & Summerville, A. (2005). What we regret most...and why. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 31(9), 1273-1285. https://doi.org/10.1177/0146167205274693
Stoker, B. Dracula. Dover Publications, Inc.
Kacy Walz is a writing instructor from St. Louis, MO. She is currently working on a PhD in Literature from the University of Missouri. Along with her work on the blog, Kacy also cohosts the Walden Writing Center podcast. She enjoys piña coladas and getting caught in the rain.
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How to Manage Procrastination and Brain Fog
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| Image used with permission from Pixabay |
Anxiety presents another layer to brain fog,
which can lead to procrastination. The Social Anxiety Institute stated that anxiety
increases as we place too many tasks on ourselves at once. This can lead to
procrastination because of the excessive number of tasks to complete.
Additionally, Dr. Harriet Learner in Psychology Today
also stated that anxiety causes brain fog. Frequently we assume doing something
unrelated to writing a course paper can help us towards getting the course
paper completed. With that said, we might reflect on whether procrastination on
social media is just adding to or maintaining our list of tasks to complete,
perpetuating anxiety.
Short term anxiety can create short term brain
fog, and long term, or chronic, anxiety can be a powerful force—but thankfully,
not a permanent force. When it comes to writing a course paper, it is easy to
think too far into the future (being afraid of a negative outcome of the course
paper), and not be mindful of the moment, or utilize tools that help us to
break down the task.
In my work towards my doctorate degree,
I’ve gone down the social media dark hole as well as dealt with significant
personal and professional challenges, sending my anxiety overboard and placing
me in what feels like a huge brain fog. By working to overcome procrastination
and brain fog has helped me move closer towards finishing. Below, I’ve
included a few tips to help you with procrastination and brain fog:
1. Therapy: Therapy has been the most excellent tool in my academic success at Walden University. Therapy helps me talk through life’s obstacles that may place me into brain fog. As mentioned earlier, anxiety can lead to brain fog, but so can depression, grief, sadness, or trauma. Therapists work closely with their clients to help resolve these issues. Resolution can lead to success once the client is open to seeking opportunities that will help them thrive, both personally and academically.
2. Breaks from social media: Technology like smartphones and computers allow us to be constantly "plugged in" to the news and current events. Being plugged into social media too much feeds procrastination and could lead to anxiety. One way to address this is to make social media applications less easy to access. You might consider removing these apps from your phone or using website blockers or timers to limit your access.
3. To-do list or planners: I am willing to give the office supply store my income based on planners alone. Not only do I love them, but planners and to-do lists keep me on track and organized. I use them to ensure I am not missing out on anything important, such as assignments, webinars, meetings, and coursework related tasks. Staying organized keeps me on track and helps me to avoid procrastination.
4. Meditation and Mindfulness: As a yoga instructor, I know that the purpose of meditation and mindfulness is to consider the thoughts that make us feel upset, sad, or anxious and to focus on the thoughts that make us feel empowered, happy, refreshed, energetic, and accomplished. It’s the practice of knowing and focusing on the “now” and not “back then” and “in the future.” Using meditation and mindfulness when dealing with brain fog, as the writer, helps to focus on what you are doing, in that very moment. Meditation and mindfulness help the student to focus on their ability to produce the very best course paper by encouraging focus on that exact task and nothing else. By focusing on being in that very moment of creating a paper, you can navigate out of your brain fog!
1. Therapy: Therapy has been the most excellent tool in my academic success at Walden University. Therapy helps me talk through life’s obstacles that may place me into brain fog. As mentioned earlier, anxiety can lead to brain fog, but so can depression, grief, sadness, or trauma. Therapists work closely with their clients to help resolve these issues. Resolution can lead to success once the client is open to seeking opportunities that will help them thrive, both personally and academically.
2. Breaks from social media: Technology like smartphones and computers allow us to be constantly "plugged in" to the news and current events. Being plugged into social media too much feeds procrastination and could lead to anxiety. One way to address this is to make social media applications less easy to access. You might consider removing these apps from your phone or using website blockers or timers to limit your access.
3. To-do list or planners: I am willing to give the office supply store my income based on planners alone. Not only do I love them, but planners and to-do lists keep me on track and organized. I use them to ensure I am not missing out on anything important, such as assignments, webinars, meetings, and coursework related tasks. Staying organized keeps me on track and helps me to avoid procrastination.
4. Meditation and Mindfulness: As a yoga instructor, I know that the purpose of meditation and mindfulness is to consider the thoughts that make us feel upset, sad, or anxious and to focus on the thoughts that make us feel empowered, happy, refreshed, energetic, and accomplished. It’s the practice of knowing and focusing on the “now” and not “back then” and “in the future.” Using meditation and mindfulness when dealing with brain fog, as the writer, helps to focus on what you are doing, in that very moment. Meditation and mindfulness help the student to focus on their ability to produce the very best course paper by encouraging focus on that exact task and nothing else. By focusing on being in that very moment of creating a paper, you can navigate out of your brain fog!
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Handling the Hot Thoughts: Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and Writing
Although I am a professional writer and educator, writing
does not always come easy for me. When I am facing a bad case of writer’s block,
I rely on a psychotherapy technique I learned from a therapist: cognitive
behavioral therapy.
Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is a form of psychotherapy
developed by Dr. Aaron Beck in the 1960’s (Greenberger & Padesky, 1995).
This therapy treats stress, depression, and anxiety by helping a person to
identify and challenge their negative thoughts (Greenberger & Padesky,
1995). With practice, CBT can help a person to automatically identify negative
thinking and turn thoughts from negative to positive.
Note: This blog provides just a summary of CBT, but you can
find more information on the topic from Greenberger and Padesky’s book Mind Over Mood (1995). Before I jump into using CBT for writing anxiety, please know
I am not trained in any kind of therapy or mental health care. These are just
tips I have found to be helpful when I’m battling my own writing anxieties.
Step 1: Identify your situation and mood (Greenberger &
Padesky, 1995)
The first step in using CBT for writing is to identify the
situation and how you are feeling (Greenberger & Padesky, 1995). For
example: Last week I was struggling to write a work assignment that asked for
my personal opinion. In this example, the situation was a work assignment, and
I felt nervous and insecure about providing my personal opinion. Because of
these feelings, I found myself procrastinating on the assignment.
Other examples of situation and mood may include:
- You’re writing a major assessment for a course and you have no idea where to start. You pored over research, but you are putting off writing because you feel overwhelmed.
- You’re almost done with an annotated bibliography. The annotations and entries are done, but now you are stuck on the introduction. You’re feeling anxious about finishing this assignment because it is worth such a large percentage of your course grade.
Step 2: Identify your automatic thoughts and the hot thought
(Greenberger & Padesky, 1995)
As you are identifying your situation and mood, where do you
find your thoughts going? For my work assignment, my automatic thoughts
included: “I will have to turn this assignment in late. My coworkers will be
upset with me. Everyone will think I am terrible at my job.” Yikes! My thoughts
went to a pretty extreme place. In my automatic thoughts, “Everyone will think
I am terrible at my job” is definitely the hottest or scariest thought.
Using the same situations and moods as above, here are some
examples of automatic and hot thoughts:
- “I have no idea how to start this paper, because I am not good at writing. Hot thought: Whatever I turn in will be terrible.”
- “I have no idea what to write for this introduction. What if I finish this assignment and I get a terrible grade? Hot thought: If I get a terrible grade, my overall course grade will drop.”
Step 3: Identify evidence that does not support the hot
thought, and instead, develop an alternative thought (Greenberger &
Padesky, 1995)
I could have let my automatic thoughts continue to spiral,
but I was able to stop and counter my negative thinking by looking for evidence
to support my hot thought. Did I have any proof that my coworkers thought I was
terrible? My coworkers had always been very supportive of my work. They had given
me praise and encouragement on many projects. There was no evidence to support
my hot thought. I had never turned in an assignment late before, and I knew I
could still make the deadline because I had performed this kind of task in the
past! My alternative thought or my positive, rational idea was, “I might have
to ask for an extension, but I have to try first.”
Here are some examples of looking for evidence that does not
support hot thoughts and alternative thoughts:
- I have never turned in a terrible paper before. While I may have done poorly on some writing assignments in the past, I was able to revise my writing and learn from the experience. Alternative Thought: I am confident in all the research I have done. I can freewrite my first draft and then get help from the Writing Center.
- So far I have not received a bad grade in this class. In fact, my instructor has been happy with my writing. Alternative thought: I may be stuck now, but I will begin by outlining my introduction. If I am still struggling with writer’s block, I will reach out to my instructor for feedback.
Ultimately, CBT is about addressing the negative thoughts
that hold us back, and turning them into positive thoughts that move us
forward. By working through this process, we have to slow down and rationalize
our worst fears. More often than not, these fears are unfounded. With time and
practice, applying CBT to your writing anxieties may happen automatically.
Reference
Greenberger, D., & Padesky, C. A. (1995). Mind over
mood. New York, NY: The Guilford Press.
Tasha Sookochoff is a writing instructor in the Walden University Writing Center. Along with earning degrees from the University of Wisconsin, Stout and Depaul University, Tasha has written documentation for the U.S. House of Representatives that increases government transparency, blogged for DePaul University, copy-edited the Journal of Second Language Writing, tutored immigrants and refugees at literacy centers, and taught academic writing to college students.
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Thursday Thoughts: Restorative Writing for Social Change
Social change is one focus that sets Walden University apart. Here in the Writing Center, we're excited to support writers as they work towards social change by offering several resources related to the topic.
We are excited to add a new webinar to our webinar archive. Using Restorative Writing to Enact Social Change explores how you can use writing to work through difficult experiences and events and move towards social change in your community. In this hour long webinar that you can watch at any time, you will learn what restorative writing is and be able to practice it with several guided writing exercises.
Check out these other great resources related to restorative writing for social change:
The Walden University Writing Center helps student writers at all points of the writing process by providing one on one writing instruction, modules, webinars, a podcast, and blog.
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Check out these other great resources related to restorative writing for social change:
- WriteCast Episode 36: Social Change and Difficult Conversations is a podcast episode devoted to handling difficult conversations related to change
- In the blog post How to Write for Positive Social Change, Dissertation Editor Lydia talks through how to explain the social change implications of your academic work at Walden
- Exploring Perspectives is another webinar focused on writing for social change
- The Academic Skills Center has a Creative Writing for Social Change webinar in their archive and is also hosting a virtual conference on Using Your Skills for Social Change on October 4, 2018
- For more on the importance of social change here at Walden, see the Social Change at Walden web page
The Walden University Writing Center helps student writers at all points of the writing process by providing one on one writing instruction, modules, webinars, a podcast, and blog.
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The Write Mindset: Creating Mindful Writing Spaces
As a Writing Instructor, a large part of my workday is spent
writing emails, academic resources, and paper reviews. Because I work from home, some mornings the
desire to hit snooze three times, roll from my bed to my couch, and write in my
pajamas all day is too real! To avoid making a permanent indent in my couch,
I’ve created a mindful writing space where I look forward to spending my day. I shaped this space
by asking myself three questions.
What helps me to stay productive?
I know from experience that I cannot remain productive if I
plop down with my laptop in front of the TV. I do my best work in a bright,
organized space, (away from distractions) where I have everything I need. To
create this space in my tiny apartment, I turned the dining room into my office.
Out went the dinner table, and in went my over-sized, industrial work desk—one
of my treasured, vintage finds. I have dual-monitors, which allows me to keep my
email open on one screen and my paper reviews on the other. Spread out in front
of me are my agenda, phone, to-do lists, and all of my favorite office supplies.
With everything in arm’s reach, I never have to track down a pen or my phone.
The light coming in from the windows and lamps keeps me alert, and if all else
fails, I am only a couple steps away from the coffee maker.
What makes me feel comfortable?
For me, part of staying on task is making sure I am
comfortable; otherwise, it is too easy for me to become distracted by the
smallest things in my environment. For example, I get cold easily, so in the
winter I set up a little space heater near my desk, and I always have a sweater
handy. I enjoy working in a clean space, so I tidy up every morning before I
even open my email. Also, I have a sensitive nose, and certain smells help me
stay alert. For example, diffusing grapefruit essential oil throughout the day
keeps me happy. These little steps make my workspace pleasant to work in, and
they are comforting if I am having a particularly busy or stressful day.
What is and isn’t in my control?
While I have taken a number of steps to prepare my workspace
for productivity and comfort, all of the preparing in the world may not solve a
bad case of writer’s block. Some days, I write a new email and the words pour onto the screen.
Other days, I can get stuck for hours writing a grammar tutorial. My
thoughtfully curated workspace does not always help me write at 100%. On these
occasions, I have to check-in with myself to figure out what’s going on. I ask
myself if I’m hungry, or cold, or under-caffeinated, but if these basic needs
have been met, then maybe something else is getting in my way. I could be stressed
about another project or distracted by a personal matter. If this is the case,
I actually step away from my writing space. I may take my dogs for a walk or
head to the gym. I find that if I move to a completely different location, I
can usually clear my head. On days where I am just stuck, and the only things I
can control are my actions and thoughts, walking away from my writing and my
desk helps keep my workspace a positive, productive place.
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| A Writing Space of One's Own |
Share your writing space with us!
I hope sharing my writing space with you inspires you to
create (or return) to your own mindful spot. Do you have a special nook set up
in your home? Or, do you hunker down in your local coffee shop? Please share
pictures of your writing space with us on our Facebook page, or describe your
writing space for us in the comments below!
Tasha Sookochoff is a writing instructor in the Walden University Writing Center. Along with earning degrees from the University of Wisconsin, Stout and Depaul University, Tasha has written documentation for the U.S. House of Representatives that increases government transparency, blogged for DePaul University, copy-edited the Journal of Second Language Writing, tutored immigrants and refugees at literacy centers, and taught academic writing to college students.
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The Write Mindset: A Three-Part Blog Series
On our blog, we’ve written about breaking writer’s block by finding a suitable writing environment, turning off your
internal editor, and carving out writing time despite a busy schedule. However,
as writers and humans, sometimes what blocks us—writing or otherwise—is a lack
of mindfulness
and self-care.
While none of us in the Writing Center are self-professed experts on the
subject, some of us would like to share with readers some mindfulness and
self-care tips we have for getting into the “write” mindset to ensure we aren’t
our worst enemies when it comes to creating and sticking with writing goals and our busy schedules. We’ll be sharing these tips over the next few
weeks here on the blog.
For the purpose of this blog series, mindfulness can be
understood as the mental space between our rational mind and our emotional mind—like
a happy union between our logical thinking selves and our feeling selves that
helps us make wiser decisions which, for instance, can help us reach our goals.
For many of us, mindfulness is a skill and not something we are automatically
born with. For instance, your rational mind might remind you Saturday morning
that you need to begin working on drafting that paper that is due next week,
whereas your emotional mind might convince you that you can put it off another
day for x, y, or z reasons. This is not to say that the emotional mind is
wrong; rather, if our emotional mind greatly conflicts with our rational mind,
or if it takes center stage in our actions and decisions, we might tend to find
ourselves in situations that may eventually lead us farther away from our
goals—education, career, or otherwise.
You can read all of our posts in this series as they're published.
Finding Your Drishti: A look at how the mind and body work together, as well as tips for how a yoga practice can enhance your writing practice
Creating Mindful Workspaces: A glimpse inside of the workspace of one Walden Writing Center Instructor and how mindfulness can influence physical spaces
Managing Time Mindfully: A Writing Instructor's strategies for balancing work, writing, and family using simple time-management techniques
With this in mind, we hope you enjoy our Instructor posts on tips for getting into The Write Mindset and we hope you share with us your own tips for harnessing this mindset as well!
The Walden University Writing Center strives to support student writers in all of their academic writing pursuits. The Instructors, Editors, and Leadership of the Writing Center recognize that learners and writers have different needs. As such, we produce a variety of resources intended to support writers where they are, when they need them.
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The Write Mindset: Finding Your Drishti
Admit it—it can be easy to let your mind wander while
working on a paper—maybe you get distracted by bills, work, or something else.
While this can be inevitable, it can also lead towards more distractions where you aren't working in the present in ways that move you forward towards your future
goals. In this blog post, I’d like to share how I used the practice of yoga to
decrease distractions and increase productivity while writing
my dissertation.
What does yoga have to do with writing? Well, not much
really—not directly anyway. For me, though, yoga has served as one way for me
to practice mindfulness
by working on my drishti—where
I focus my attention. In other words, it has helped me learn to stay focused on
the present moment, so I could, for instance, sit down and focus on writing my
dissertation instead of worrying about x, y, or z—in other words, whatever else
was going on in my life.
When I was working on my dissertation, I was also going
through other “stuff” and that other “stuff” tended to take the front seat to
the dissertation (seriously, I will save you the details of the “stuff”). Life
happens, of course, and sometimes tending to that does need to come first. That
said, it’s important to be able to strike a balance among life, work, school,
and other “stuff” so everyday life (and not-so-everyday life) doesn’t distract
us from working towards our current and future goals, such as writing that dissertation,
graduating, and moving on and up in our careers.
One thing that has helped me find that balance is the
practice of yoga. More specifically, yoga has helped me de-stress
and practice
self-care so that when unexpected “stuff” happens—when just everyday life
happens—I feel more calm and mindful so I can focus on both the present (such
as writing that dissertation) while also dealing with life and “stuff.” To be clear, this increased focus has helped
me consider what actions I need to take in the moment, so I can both take care
of things as they come, move forward through them, and continue towards my
future goals so I don’t become “stuck.”
While learning writing skills is important, as both a
student and a teacher, I noticed that other skills are equally important—skills
such as mindfulness—that we may or may not have naturally acquired.
For me,
like the skill of scholarly writing, mindfulness is something I had to learn
and, like writing or any other skill, it takes continual practice. Admittedly,
any type of exercise can likely help, but for me, yoga, with its focus on the mind-body connection, has been about working
on grounding myself in the present. That said, I wanted to share this strategy that
isn’t so much about a direct writing skill, but about self-care that fosters
the development of other skills, such as writing.
Have any mindful writing tips of your own? We would love to
hear what helps you get into the “Write mindset"!
Veronica Oliver is a Writing Instructor in the Walden Writing Center. In her spare time she writes fiction, binge watches Netflix, and occasionally makes it to a 6am Bikram Yoga class.
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