Blog members sometimes ask me about my work habits: I seem to get a lot of writing done in addition to the day job as a university professor and doing the blog and what not. How’s that happen exactly? I should say that it’s not happenin’ too well right now: start of classes – teaching 240 students remotely! – and lots of other things–I ain’t getting twit done on my research….
But normally I do try to pack it in. And how? My usual answer is that I don’t watch a lot of TV. And that’s certainly true. I do watch the news sometimes – I did a lot more, e.g., in election season; but I find televised news both problematic and inefficient, if what you really want is *news*. It’s problematic because most news shows these days do not demarcate between information and opinion (it’s impossible to do that completely, of course; but sometimes you really do just want to know facts); it’s inefficient because the amount of news you can get in an hour-long show you can easily get in 10-15 minutes if you’re reading from a reputable source. So there’s 45-50 minutes more to your day, just there!
I do watch sports. But almost always when I’m working out, since it’s a good way to spend the time.
I used to say that I got a lot of reading and writing done because I didn’t sleep much. And once in my life that was true. But no more. I’m far more productive if I get a good night’s sleep, so I almost always do.
I’d say that I manage to get a lot done mainly because I’m able to focus intensely, I am crazily disciplined, and I’m unusually obsessive about time. I am not touting these as admirable traits. Some of those close to me decidedly think they are not. ?
The traits are all closely interrelated, of course. Early in my career…
Most posts on the blog are not about me, of course, but about non-sectarian scholarship on the New Testament and early Christianity. Interested in that? Join!