Its Thursday afternoon and you are an academic who has just finished lecturing to 100 undergraduates – it would have been 105 but you think the 5 near the radiators might have been asleep.
You sigh and sit down at your desk, trying to decide what to do with the next hour before your train home. Do you:
[[Go and make coffee really slowly]]
[[Open your emails]]
[[Settle in to do some Research]]
<img src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d1/Kherson._Rainy_day._View_from_Library%27s_window._June%2C_2009_-_panoramio.jpg" width="1000" height="600" alt="rainy view">You drag out the coffee making process as long as possible, slowly washing your cafetiere both before and after brewing your drink, hoping that a colleague will appear and provide a welcome distraction.
Unfortunately none do and you reluctantly settle back down at your desk, coffee cup in hand with 40 minutes left before you leave for your train home. Sighing you:
[[Open your emails]]
[[Settle in to do some Research]]
<img src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/05/A_time_for_a_cup_of_coffee.jpg" width="1000" height="600" alt="coffee"><img src="http://res.freestockphotos.biz/pictures/15/15981-a-student-on-a-laptop-pv.jpg" width="1000" height="600" alt="emails">
As your emails load you glance out the window at the gray February day before looking back at your now loaded inbox.
You can see three unread ones you need to look at, which do you choose first:
[[Read the email about Reading Lists]]
[[Read the email about Cats from a colleague]]
[[Read the email marked urgent from one of your PhD supervisees]]<img src="http://res.freestockphotos.biz/pictures/15/15989-female-hands-typing-on-a-laptop-keyboard-pv.jpg" width="1000" height="600" alt="studying">
As important as admin is, if you always prioritise it you'll never get anything done - its time to carve out some time for your own research
You stay late working on your current research project and keep at it all through the weekend.
It isn't until you come in on Monday morning that you [[Open your emails]]As soon as you open the Reading List email you can see it is the annual generic one the Dean always circulates.
You know Reading Lists are important, but its only February and your new module hasn't been approved. Do you
[[Send it to the library anyway]]
[[Shelve Reading Lists until reminded in May]]
<img src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/67/Librarian_accessing_pdq.jpg" width="1000" height="600" alt="classic librarian">You feel a pang of guilt as you click on the cat email, you're a bit worried about that PhD student but you'll get to it later.
<img src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cd/Stray_kitten_Rambo002.jpg" width="800" height="600" alt="kitten">
You stare at the adorable kitten for a minute to relax and then move onto the next email
[[Read the email about Reading Lists]]
[[Read the email marked urgent from one of your PhD supervisees]]You click the email marked urgent first, you haven't heard from this student since January and you've been a bit uneasy.
Sure enough, they have been having some issues. You email them to set up a meeting and begin checking the internal webpages for advice on how to help them.
[[Shelve Reading Lists until reminded in May]]
<img src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/12/Hair_pulling_stress.jpg" width="800" height="535" alt="stressed student">The Library emails you back to let you know your reading list is ready one week later. You thank them and then get back to a Research Project you've been working on.
<img src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/49/Queen_Elizabeth_II_and_Prince_Philip_disembark_from_a_British_Airways_Concorde.jpg" width="800" height="520" alt="arrival">
Returning from a conference in mid-August you update the list and send this through to the library. This time two week passes and you stil haven't been notified that your list is ready. Do you:
[[Email the library to chase them up]]
[[Assume it will be fine]]You forget about Reading Lists until your friendly Subject Librarian mentions that they haven't received many from your department during a staff meeting in May.
<img src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fc/White_House_staff_meeting_in_the_Oval_Office.JPG" width="500" height="300" alt="meeting">
You know yours in one of the lists that hasn't been sent in, after the meeting you:
[[Revise your Reading List and send it to the library]]
[[Ask your Subject Librarian for a chat]]
[[Get distracted submitting an abstract for a conference in Brisbane]]You drop your subject librarian an email to see what happening.
<img src="https://c2.staticflickr.com/4/3928/15197798540_a3de806e53_b.jpg" width="600" height="300" alt="lego librarian">
They explain that August is a very busy month for the library but to flag up with them if there are any new books on the list.
[[You send the library a list of ten titles]]You're relatively sure the library will get to it when they can, and they do.
You're relieved when your Reading List is updated in time for the start of term...some of the students complain that some of the books aren't in the library but almost everything is there.
<img src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/55/1980_Summer_Olympics_bronze_medal_Transparent.png" width="626" height="531" alt="well done">The Subject Librarian thanks you for flagging the new books up with them, they put an order through.
The list isn't updated until mid-September, just before the students arrive, but it is ready at the start of term.
<img src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/21/Disneyworld_Cinderella_Castle_fireworks_2014.jpg" width="720" height="610" alt="disney fireworks">
Congratulations, you found the 'best' ending, you win an imaginary trip to DisneylandYou send your Reading List to the Library. You get an email back six weeks later telling you the Reading List is ready.
You can't help but think that took quite a while, but at least you don't need to worry about it again until next year.
<img src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/55/1980_Summer_Olympics_bronze_medal_Transparent.png" width="626" height="531" alt="well done">You explain to your Subject Librarian that your module is new and has not yet been given final approval. You're pretty sure the weeks will switch about and you may have to make changes to the list.
<img src="https://c2.staticflickr.com/4/3928/15197798540_a3de806e53_b.jpg" width="600" height="300" alt="lego librarian">
The Subject Librarian advises you send the list you have now to the library and to let them know if any changes need made so you:
[[Send it to the library]]You fully intend to send the library your list after the meeting, but when you open your email you see a suggestion from a colleague that you present at a conference in Brisbane.
<img src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/21/Cutest_Koala.jpg" width="654" height="600" alt="Koala">
It is a prestigious event so you submit an abstract, forgetting about your Reading List until you return from the conference in mid-August.
Realising that you still haven't submitted your list you quickly update and send it to the library.
You haven't heard back by the start of September. Do you:
[[Email the library to chase them up]]
[[Assume it will be fine]]Alerted that the list is for a new module, the library prioritises the list and notifies you it is ready 3 weeks later. You thank them and then get back to a Research Project you've been working on.
<img src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/49/Queen_Elizabeth_II_and_Prince_Philip_disembark_from_a_British_Airways_Concorde.jpg" width="800" height="520" alt="arrival">
Returning from a conference in mid-August you update the list and send this through to the library. This time two week passes and you stil haven't been notified that your list is ready. Do you:
[[Email the library to chase them up]]
[[Assume it will be fine]]