{"id":1011,"date":"2018-11-28T13:43:49","date_gmt":"2018-11-28T18:43:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/gradpd\/?p=1011"},"modified":"2025-07-14T13:58:09","modified_gmt":"2025-07-14T17:58:09","slug":"unstick-yourself-strategies-for-dealing-with-feeling-stuck-week-3-of-acwrimo","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/gradpd\/2018\/unstick-yourself-strategies-for-dealing-with-feeling-stuck-week-3-of-acwrimo\/","title":{"rendered":"Unstick yourself: Strategies for dealing with \u201cfeeling stuck\u201d -Brittany Amell"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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\n Unstick yourself: Strategies for dealing with \u201cfeeling stuck\u201d -Brittany Amell\n <\/h1>\n \n \n <\/header>\n\n <\/div>\n\n <\/div>\n\n <\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n\n\n

Last week<\/a> I wrote <\/em>about how common it is for writers to experience, at one point or another, a sense of getting \u201cstuck\u201d in one\u2019s writing. This week I share some strategies that emerged from my earlier research with doctoral students. If you\u2019re stuck, I hope that something here spurs you onward! Don\u2019t give up!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I imagine that you, reader, are a bit like me\u2014surely, we\u2019d both rather find our words and ideas are fluid, forthcoming, plentiful, as well as easily accessed and channelled into our writing. Yet perhaps you, like me, still find that there are moments when quite the opposite is true. We get stuck. The word \u201cwriting\u201d becomes a misnomer (more like \u201cmuddling\u201d, am I right?!). The good news is that it is more often the case that \u201cstuckness\u201d is temporary. Still, it can be handy to have some suggestions on standby for those times when we really can\u2019t seem\u2026to\u2026 make\u2026 any\u2026 headway(!). So, without further adieu, here are some suggestions from the doctoral students who participated in my small research project. I hope that you, dear stuck reader, might find something useful here.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Strategy 1: Take a break!<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some participants swear by taking a break from writing to do something else. These can be other things that you are good at, and things that make you feel better about yourself. One participant (Public Affairs, YR 5) suggested healthy activities like yoga or exercise, while another (Arts & Social Sciences, YR 3) suggested moving to a different paragraph or section. You might work on collecting your references, for instance, or even moving to a different task altogether.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If that fails, there\u2019s always \u201csoul food nourishment\u201d and \u201cone’s choice of binge-entertainment\u201d (Arts & Social Sciences, YR 1). This student in particular swears by \u201cmac and cheese\u2026and Downton Abbey\u201d as a way to \u201ctake one’s mind away from the ‘stump’ for a while\u201d (Arts & Social Sciences, YR 1). They even go so far as to assert that \u201cmac and cheese tastes so much better on a doily\u201d!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now there\u2019s a research idea\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Strategy 2: Treat yo\u2019self<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Other participants suggest self-bribery as a method\u2014which I can get behind. One participant (Science, YR 3) suggests we create short-term immediate rewards like \u201cwrite a page, get a chocolate\u201d rather than vague long-term rewards (\u201cwrite a paper, maybe get published\u201d).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Personally, I like the idea of minimal effort, maximum gains\u2014 \u201cwrite a page, get a Ferrari\u201d\u2014but seeing as (a) I am a student on a limited income and (b) minimal effort has rarely (and only by a fluke) resulted in maximum gains, I think this student is on to something.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You could also be flexible with the sorts of rewards you imagine for yourself, as one fifth-year Arts and Social Sciences student does. For them, \u201crewards\u201d might come in the form of attending fun social events and spending time with friends.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Whether you choose to attend a concert or enjoy a nice meal, participants find it useful to set clear, small, and achievable goals, as well as clear, accessible, and desirable rewards. This makes complete sense to me: if you make the goal achievable, you\u2019ll be much more likely to reap the sweet reward!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Strategy 3: Put a ring(er) on it*<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

And by ringer, I mean the sweet tinny sound of your timer. (No, I will not apologize for my Dad jokes!)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some participants swear by working in timed units. One student (Arts & Social Sciences, YR 4) suggests that working in units (\u201cset chunks with a timer\u2026 sometimes as short as 10 minutes\u201d) is very helpful, especially if you commit to \u201cstaying on task\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You might find units can be an effective method for tackling larger projects. First, take the large project and divide it into smaller tasks. Next, estimate the time you think each task will take. Then, assign the smaller tasks to \u201cdiscrete, easily-handled units\u201d (Public Affairs, YR 4). Don\u2019t be afraid to set your timer for 10 minutes if you think that is all you can handle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sometimes, when I have trouble staying focused, I take a sticky-note and write down the specific task I want to work on for the unit. I keep that note in an obvious place and only remove it when the timer is over, and\/or I am finished. And if I have multiple tasks I need to focus on, I\u2019ll write one per sticky-note and use them to help me stay organized as I move through my units.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Strategy 4: Create a map or outline<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Feeling lost? Make a map! Some participants rely on \u201cdrawing out a mind map of ideas to attempt to isolate areas of uncertainty that may be the cause of the problem\u201d (Public Affairs, YR 3). Others will use freewriting and drawing<\/a> to map their \u201cway out of feeling stuck\u201d (Education, YR 8). Don\u2019t draw? Try creating a collage of interesting words, phrases, or images.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You could also try freewriting on your plan for your piece or create an outline as one Engineering student (YR 4) does. And if you have several previous drafts, you could try creating a reverse outline<\/a> Arts & Social Sciences, YR 3).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Strategy 5: Persevere<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I had a good, knowing chuckle at this suggestion from a participant: \u201cStare at the screen until the words are sweated out\u201d (Arts & Social Sciences, YR 4). It\u2019s a strategy that is rarely my favourite, but probably my most effective\u2014that being the fact that a large portion of my writing happens when my bum is in my seat. That being said, there is something to say for those of us who can reframe how we are thinking about our writing, as one sixth-year Science student notes. They suggest we focus on writing \u201cas much as possible\u2026get anything down, without thinking of quality\u201d because we can always \u201crefine and reorganize later\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bonus Strategy: \u201cJust write casually and hope something happens\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I tried not to play favourites with the suggestions that participants put forward in my study, but one student\u2014a first-year in Arts and Social Sciences\u2014gave one that sounded so much like a meme that I had to make one, and end with it. I hope you find it as hilarious as I do! And hey, if you have any suggestions, shoot me an email or Tweet me (@balloonleap<\/strong>)! I\u2019d love to hear what you do to get \u201cunstuck\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Last week I wrote about how common it is for writers to experience, at one point or another, a sense of getting \u201cstuck\u201d in one\u2019s writing. This week I share some strategies that emerged from my earlier research with doctoral students. If you\u2019re stuck, I hope that something here spurs you onward! Don\u2019t give up! […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[32,37],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1011","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-acwrimo","category-contributions"],"acf":{"cu_post_thumbnail":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/gradpd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1011","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/gradpd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/gradpd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/gradpd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/gradpd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1011"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/gradpd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1011\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7086,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/gradpd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1011\/revisions\/7086"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/gradpd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1011"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/gradpd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1011"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/gradpd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1011"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}