Goal Setting for Academic Writing: Accountability

But I don't wanna... (i.e., accountability)

If you are one of those magical people with a magically healthy sense of magical self-motivation...well, good for you! Skip this section. For the rest of us mere mortals, sticking to our writing goals can be a challenge. Here are some ideas to help:

Get it in your calendar as a real thing

It's easy for 'work on that essay' to get bumped down, down, down your priority list until suddenly the essay is due...tomorrow. Drafting and research goals shouldn't be loose intentions that float invisibly around your head: they should be recorded and scheduled. Add your writing sessions to the calendar you use most, and set up alarms and reminders.

Set yourself up for success

Know thyself, know thyself, know thyself: what distracts you when you're trying to work? Identify the distractions, and do everything you can to eliminate or mitigate them. For example, if social media's siren call always gets to you, stop trying to succeed with willpower alone: leave your phone in a library locker or give it to a trusted friend until your writing session is over. See our writing environment guide for more suggestions on tailoring how you write.

Lean on external accountability

Consider drafting with an accountabili-buddy or writing group. It can be so helpful if you need to 'show up' not only for yourself, but for peers. For extra motivation, create a shared document where each of you log progress towards your drafting goals; this can be as basic as a table of the weekdays where you type 'Y' if you met the goal or 'N' if you didn't. Give encouragement, get encouragement: everyone wins.

• Use this Collaborative Writing Goal Tracker (Excel file) to record multiple writers' mini-goals and progress.

Visually represent your achievements

This is a simple one, but it feels great: create a way to visually mark each goal you hit.

• Tap into your inner child and slap gold star stickers onto the calendar.
• Draw a thermometer on a piece of paper with the word-count total at the top; colour it in each day as you creep closer to the goal.
• Put each mini-goal in the Microsoft To-Do app and relish in that 'ping' sound when you mark it complete.
• If you knit, start a 'dissertation/thesis scarf' when you embark on your project: this is a variation on the 'temperature scarf' idea, which you can look up for inspiration. You could knit in a new row for each paragraph you write or article you read, or knit in a different colour for each day's writing activity (i.e., green for reading, pink for rough drafting, gold for rewriting, etc.)—get creative! When you finish your project, you'll have a beautiful scarf to commemorate the academic milestone.

Make a writing ritual

Cultivate a little ritual that tells your brain, 'It's time to write.' Buy a special tea or coffee that you only brew for writing. Or designate an ugly (but oh-so-comfy) jumper your official 'Making Words Happen Jumper.' Or do some sun salutations while singing 'Wrecking Ball' at the top of your lungs. It doesn't have to be dignified: it's your writing ritual.

Devise a reward system

Rewards that are contingent on perfection tend to be demotivating, so if you try this route, do reward yourself for a 'pretty okay' job: 100% goal-hitting is not realistic. Did you hit most your goals in a week? Perhaps you and your partner agree to binge some bad reality TV on the weekend. Complete your rough draft well ahead of the deadline? Treat yourself to an at-home spa day, or watch some rugby at the pub. For some people, it works to intersperse mini-rewards while writing, i.e., 'For every 45 minutes I draft, I'll give myself 15 minutes of TikTok.'