What you really need to be a super productive academic is to not be a wounded person. Because if you have open wounds, all of your productive energy will seep away through them.
And once you get the psychological wounds taken care of, then you’ll definitely need a good planner.
Well, that describes me to some extent; I did spend a fair amount of time wondering why my planners were no longer working for me.
BUT:
I think what one actually needs are good circumstances (i.e. not to be trying to grow yourself in nutrient-poor or poisoned ground), and/or a WHOLE lot of ego and/or a whole lot of support that you get privately. Many very successful people I know are deeply wounded and not very wholesome, but they have a lot of people serving them or afraid not to accommodate them; many people where I am are quite wholesome but are trying to plow in frozen ground.
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Yes, I forgot to say that many traumatized people turn trauma into workaholism. Which isn’t much better than, say, alcoholism. It’s socially approved yet still unhealthy.
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Hah, that was me this year. I think I’m beginning to grow past it, but wow, is it an amazing way to end up doing nothing much useful. You look very active, but actually achieve far less than you could
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. Because if you have open wounds, all of your productive energy will seep away through them.
I think what one actually needs are good circumstances (i.e. not to be trying to grow yourself in nutrient-poor or poisoned ground), and/or a WHOLE lot of ego and/or a whole lot of support that you get privately.
The (psychological) struggle is real. Tangentially, I saw an episode of The Profit where the business founders because of the owner’s psychological and family issues. She complains of being the golden child who is tired of the burden of carrying everyone but when her employees including her beaten down sister (the body language is just striking) come up with new ideas for the business she vetoes all of them.
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” not be a wounded person”
This reminds me of the old joke:
Q: How do get to live to a hundred?
A: Make it to 99 and then be very careful.
Or
Q: How do you make a million dollars
A: Have 999,900 dollars and then work very hard.
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Yep. It’s the hardest part by far far far. But it’s doable. Not making it to 99, I mean, but healing the wounds.
Just today I was thinking how much I dig living in a small town. I used to detest it. But now I know that it wasn’t the towns’ fault. It was me who was a miserable git.
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A conservative literary critic and college professor
Clarissa's Blog 
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