As I teach a class additional times, I invariably end up modifying the PowerPoint slides I made previously. This usually means cutting material out rather than adding more material. Fewer concepts taught more in more depth rather than the "laundry list" approach to teaching - that's the ticket.Since I haven't put in enough time on research yet today, that's enough for now. Time to start the stopwatch and get to work.
My school has too many meetings. Meetings suck, and are seldom productive. I chair a committee, and we haven't met once this academic year. The only reason for a meeting is to take care of things that you can't use email (or conversations in the hallway) for.
Record-keeping keeps you honest, and denial isn't just a river in Egypt. Up until this last weekend, I had spent at least an hour each day on research every day since the first of the year. After the string of consecutive days got to 20, I would make sure I put in my hour to keep the string alive.
Good preparation for classes helps down the road. I spend almost no time prepping for my principles class nowadays, and I get higher evaluations and my students get a better grasp of the material each time I teach it.
A bad day in academia is still better than most other jobs.
Random Thoughts
With apologies to Thomas Sowell, here are a few random thoughts: