Motivation

Writing an academic paper may seem like hiking up an unfamiliar mountain without a trail map. The
total effort is immense, you dont know the area, and you may not feel fit enough to handle the stress.
There is also a maze of trails: some trails are interesting, some tiresome and
some simply leading nowhere. Where should you start, how should you
start, and is it possible to leave your own mark?
Here are a few motivational techniques and ideas to get you climbing

Make it Fun
Find the Right Mountain. Make the writing assignment relevant to your personal interests or
career goals. If the topic is less interesting, use the assignment to learn new research techniques.
Choose courses of interest and pertinence to your career rather than those that are simple and
are taken only to get your degree. You are much more likely to climb a difficult yet interesting
mountain, than to start on a simple and boring hill leading nowhere. Find a personal goal for
each assignment after all, they are ultimately for you, not the professor!
Explore the Valleys. Not everything has to be directly career related. A few seemingly
irrelevant courses that are fun can break up the monotony of pure academics. After all, you can
always find something to apply to your career, even if, for example, they are interpersonal
skills. Any hiking will improve your overall fitness level. Similarly, join a club, volunteer or
party (just dont get lost here). Being motivated elsewhere is contagious and will positively
affect your academic pursuits!
Have a Break, Sit, Relax, and Smell the Flowers. Take a timeout from your academic
endeavours. Do something else. Break up the tedium of a long ordeal - mow the lawn, build a
model airplane, have a nap or a snack. This is not time wasted. Not only will you feel refreshed,
this time serves to incubate your ideas regarding your assignments. The aha! moment can
happen at the oddest times and places!
Reward Yourself. Break up your writing journey into many smaller portions and challenge
yourself to meet specific amounts of hiking within specific time periods. When you meet your
goals, reward yourself with rest, time with friends, watching TV, etc. However, do ensure that
time spent on rewards does not interfere with completing your journey!
Travel with Friends. Talk to your colleagues and friends. Brainstorm wild and crazy ideas.
These can be very fruitful for coming up with new ways of looking at things. Point things out to
one another. Do not travel alone. Share the trials and tribulations of your efforts with others
(more below).
Follow Your Nose. On your journey, you will discover many things of personal interest, perhaps
some that no one else has recorded - with your unique viewpoint. Research these opportunities.
Get off the beaten track and bushwhack your own trail. Climb your own peak. Even if you do
remain on well worn paths, remember that your writing journey is a unique combination of many
smaller paths that no-one else has put together in quite the same fashion to achieve your
distinctive experience. Careful though! Make sure you set a time limit on these adventures.
Googling an appealing idea can suddenly turn into a few hours of surfing on the internet!
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Trail Guides
Do not travel alone as this is never safe nor is it fun. Involve your family, friends, colleagues, professors,
TAs, WTS tutors, etc. with your assigned writing hike. Each can make important contributions that will
ensure that you do finish your journey quickly and have covered all the important sights, i.e., have a
more fully developed writing product.
Family and Friends. Keep them regularly informed about your progress. That in itself can
motivate you to show progress. Your family and friends can ensure that you stay focused on your
hike rather than getting distracted, and they can provide a supportive atmosphere. Surprisingly,
your family and friends, even when not understanding the technical details of your journey, can
nevertheless, still point out interesting viewpoints, make suggestions on how to get wherever you
are going, and relate relevant aspects from their personal experiences and interests. They can
often do so in a very fun and stimulating way.
Colleagues. Keep in touch with your classmates. Some may be heading down similar paths and
sharing related knowledge can help both of you go faster. Ask your professor if hiking portions
of your journey together is permitted. Of course, these portions must be written down in your
own travel journal and with your own viewpoint. Friendly competition among your classmates
can motivate you to reach your next goal faster. Conversely, when you are slogging through a
particularly difficult portion of the hike, knowing that others are equally challenged will keep
you from getting overly depressed. Moreover, colleagues can inform you of exciting
opportunities that await around the next bend in the trail!
Professor and Teaching Assistants (TAs). The journey is yours, but the Professor and TAs
often suggest the final destination and often require that you visit specific landmarks. They will
read (and grade) your travel log to see whether you have complied with their requirements. Often
times, if your own journey is slightly off the beaten track, it will be more interesting both for
yourself and for these technical readers they have read so many similar adventures that they do
encourage variations. However, do ensure early that your destination matches what your
professor had in mind. If you do take a unique trail, the professor or TA may customize your
hike and suggest things you should do and places you should visit. Alternatively, they can steer
you away from dead-end trails or rough terrain. Bottom line, they will save you a lot of time!
Finally, keep them informed about your unique journey. This may even enable you to receive
dispensations such as extra time required for unexpected yet rewarding writing/research
challenges.
Writing Tutorial Service (WTS). The WTS can offer guidance during any part of your journey,
from the initial planning, to a final review of the form and structure of your travel log. They
monitor all trails for safety, and with a small cry for help, they will pull you out of quicksand,
help you traverse rivers, throw you a lifeline, etc. The WTS will be happy to travel the journey
with you, so you can meet with them regularly. This is especially useful if you are new to
academic journeys.
The Assignment. The assignment is your rough guide to your journey and will include things
such as the expected length. If you do wish to customize your hike, talk with your professor.
The Textbook. The textbook provides the lay of the land. It may not have the details required
for your specific journey, but it is a good starting point and often contains pointers for more
specific details.

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Stepping Stones
An experienced hiker intuitively knows the expected length of hikes, the ideal places to rest, the impact
of weather conditions, the dangers from wildlife, how to live off the land if required, and how to get
home when lost. If you are an academic writing greenhorn, you may feel overwhelmed by the amount of
analysis, synthesis, evaluative and research skills required. It is perfectly normal to feel unmotivated and
to procrastinate the start of your writing journey.
Break It Up
One of the best ways to motivate yourself is to break up this huge journey, even if it feels like an open
ticket to who knows where, into smaller portions, tasks or goals.
Smaller portions are less daunting and you are more likely to start some of these early.
You can focus on one small portion at a time, and magically, the entire journey will eventually
be completed!
Smaller goals are much more achievable. Successes here can motivate you to further successes.
Reward yourself for meeting your targets youve earned it!
Start Early
Start your writing journey as early as possible.
Smaller (preliminary) goals enable you to start early.
Starting early is the grease to get you going.
As you start on your writing journey, your fitness and motivational levels will improve enabling you to go further.
You will have more time to check up with your trail guides (see previous section). This will get
you going in the right direction sooner and will minimize the number of dead-ends you take.
You will have time to polish your paper to the level of satisfaction you desire.
Schedule
Schedule your goals and arrange meetings with your trail guides.
Schedules will enable you to see the progress in your journey. Reward yourself when your goals
have been met!
Schedules will let you see how much recreational side-trips you may take. Such R&R is
important to keep you motivated, but you must ensure that these are balanced with your main
journey.
Unlike actual hiking, schedules allow you to hike multiple writing journeys at the same time, to
prioritize the various portions, and to optimize your efforts.

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Journey Steps An Example

This is an example of the steps your writing journey can take. Every individual hikes in a different
manner, and every mountain requires a different plan of attack. Just remember to schedule the
appropriate goals and start as soon as possible. Enjoy the trip, wish you were here
Pick your Destination - Initial research
o Read some general books on possible topics (the textbook can help)
o Read some review articles on your topic
o Talk to your professor or TAs about your topic
o Talk to your friends
o Brainstorm or freewrite about initial thoughts
o Come up with a working thesis
Detailed research
o Perform a literature review
If this requires numerous readings, schedule two readings per day for example
Keep a journal of what you read
o Organize your ideas
o Talk to your professor or TAs to ensure you are on track
o Write your first draft
If this requires numerous sections (lit review, results, discussion, etc.), schedule
each
Update your Material
o Research newly discovered avenues in greater detail
o Reformulate your writing for clarity, precision, and appropriate coverage
Writing Tutorial Service
Remember, the Writing Tutorial Service is pleased to help you at any stage of your journey. We have a
wide variety of tools to assist you in any portion.

More Information
http://www.carleton.ca/sasc/development/Motivation.doc
http://www.motivation-tools.com
http://www.coun.uvic.ca/learn/motivate.html

Author: David Pierre Leibovitz, 2005

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