I've known many people whose mantra has seemed to be "if I'm doing something then I'm doing something right". While I've always tended to laugh at these people, I think that I fall into their camp more often than I would like to admit; I'll busy myself to generate the illusion of being productive. Stupid right? So why do I do this? I think I do this because in many ways it's easier than approaching things in a way that is creative and truly engaging, which is ultimately the route proposed by Boice.

His second rule (“start working before you feel ready”) is oriented to the same end. I thought about the many different times that I could have benefited from adhereing to this. Sometimes I procrastinate. Sometimes I want to know what and how I'm going to say something before I start working (and don't these two mentalities often overlap?). Both of these approaches are stressful, and neither yields a very useful product.

In the end, he's not just trying to make future faculty more efficient workers and better teachers; he's trying to show them a way to love what they do, partially because it is done in a holistic and natural way.This advice seems needed because, unfortunately, the constraints under which new faculty begin their careers foster mentalities and practices that turn their work into something they resent (i.e. “work”).

I know that I am going to have to change many things about the way I approach and handle my work before I begin teaching next year, and I think Boice would agree-there's no time like the present.