A Quick Activity to Make the Most of Your Summer as Faculty
You’ve made it to the end of the year, and you’ve earned the exhale. Take it.
But here’s the thing about summer: that open calendar can feel like freedom and then, quietly, like drift. The weeks blur, the to-do list grows, and by August the breathing room is gone.
A little planning now—not a lot, just enough—changes that. Not to pack summer full, but to make sure what matters to you actually happens.
That’s the idea behind this simple Summer Planning Activity. It takes about 30 minutes, and it’s designed to help you do three things: get concrete about your goals, take stock of where you are right now, and map out what it will actually take to close the gap.
Want to Go Deeper? Try These Prompts in Sophia
Sophia, Academic Impressions’ AI leadership coach, is a good thinking partner for the kind of reflection this activity asks for. Once you’ve worked through the document, consider bringing one or more of these prompts into a conversation with Sophia:
- “Here’s the vision I wrote for the end of summer: [paste your vision]. What assumptions might I be making about what’s possible? What am I not accounting for?”
- “I have these three goals for the summer: [list them]. Help me think through which one deserves my energy first and why.”
- “Here’s an obstacle I’m anticipating: [describe it]. What are some ways I might work around it or reframe it?”
- “Based on this goal [describe it], what questions should I be asking myself before I commit to a timeline?”
These prompts work best when you’re specific. The more context you give Sophia, the more useful the conversation will be. Sophia is a member-exclusive tool, so make sure you’re logged in to your Academic Impressions membership to access her through My Path.
Looking for More Structured Support?
If the planning process surfaces bigger questions, like how to navigate competing priorities, how to protect your research time, or how to think through a transition you’re facing, faculty coaching might be worth exploring. Academic Impressions offers one-on-one coaching specifically designed for faculty, with coaches who understand the particular pressures of balancing research, teaching, and service.
