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Hardcore procrastinator here. Reading good articles like that won't change anything. That's the bitter truth. At least this is the case for me, and probably so

Hardcore procrastinator here. Reading good articles like that won't change anything. That's the bitter truth. At least this is the case for me, and probably some other people on the internet. I'm nowhere near to have myself in full control again but I'm sick of wasting my days and feeling bad over this. Willpower for me only works when I'm concentrated. So there is a concentration problem. Being able to concentrate is also a muscle. I'm having a habit of actively avoiding exercising concentration. Related to programming it's difficult for me: A problem in my Code appears? I'm starting to Google solutions instead of trying to get a complete understanding of the problem. I'd fool myself into saying: I would look into this but I don't have the time and nobody will pay me for that. Googling and somehow trying to apply the results often works but it gives you an feeling of being unable to create something on it's own. Then there is this thought: I would like to do something but there are too much people out there that could it better, so why bother trying? And Instead of spending the days and nights learning and working on something I'm jumping around switching between problems I never fully understood nor am I able to afford the time to understand them... So it comes down from willpower to concentration and at the moment I'm believing the cause for a lack of these skills is a lack of structure. Structure for me is planning, planning in advance. Revisiting your plans and having clear ideas about yourself and the surrounding world. So creating structure requires concentration... It works like a Circulus vitiosus in both ways. If you are structured for a longer time you're concentration and willpower will go up. If you lack concentration your structure get's weaker and concentration will fall, procrastination will rise. How to solve this problem? Honest question. (Sorry for hijacking this thread, but I think it is somewhat relevant to productivity and flow to sort these things out)

hammock 15y ago
Nothing wrong with googling solutions to code...or is there?
- static_cast 15y ago
  No I think there isn't. It is effective and often there is probably no other even mildly realistic way to solve some problem in time (e.g. a bug that is reported in the software bug-tracker) I missed to make a concise point with that (concentration anyone?) It's more like 'Googling for a solution' became my default behaviour in most parts of my life. Be it education, food, advice... I think this is dangerous at least for me.
sliverstorm 15y ago
A problem in my Code appears? I'm starting to Google solutions instead of trying to get a complete understanding of the problem. The insidious thing about this is just how effective it is (if you are good at it) Then there is this thought: I would like to do something but there are too much people out there that could it better, so why bother trying? I have my own version of this demon. Everything I can think of to do, I know has been done before, and done better. This knowledge, combined with my need to make things that are new or better, is a terrible roadblock to me.
- static_cast 15y ago
  > The insidious thing about this is just how effective it is (if you are good at it) Yes, but not if you want to learn something. Then it is disastrous because you skip the "actually solving something" part.
  - sliverstorm 15y ago
    Of course! That's why it's insidious.
skybrian 15y ago
There are two things I've tried that work: - programming the router to block all traffic when it's time to go to bed. - installing Chrome nanny and blocking social sites in the morning. I can disable them, but it takes enough effort that I don't. (And I remember that I don't want to.) These aren't full solutions, but I go to bed earlier and start work earlier.
Mz 15y ago
How to solve this problem? Honest question. Honest answer: Consider the possibility that you may have a hidden health issue. Look into that angle. Addressing my own health issues has been the single biggest boost to my productivity, ability to concentrate and ability to stop being a serious hardcore procrastinator. If you simply lack physical energy and ability to concentrate, willpower is not going to overcome it. Best of luck, whatever the answer turns out to be for you.
lostmypw 15y ago
Talking about stuff like this is bound to sound esoteric, I think. So I want to put this disclaimer upfront that I detest esotericism. I can only assume that your problems are similar to mine, so I can only suggest what works for me. And that might not completely work out for you in the end, but it's worth a try for sure. Concentration: The problem of not being able to keep distracting thoughts away can be lessened with meditation. I came across this suggestion in the book Pragmatic Thinking and Learning [1] and have found an excellent CD to listen to called Guided Mindfulness Meditation [2] by Jon Kabat-Zinn. I tend to try to avoid meditation because for a while I seem to do fine and so long as I do fine it just feels like a waste of time for me. Time that I could invest reading a book. But eventually I always end up having an extreme amount of distracting thoughts to the point that I cannot learn anymore. I've now had this problem crop up often enough with meditation always helping that I'm now a lot more willing to spend the time and meditate. I want to emphasize that for *me* it was necessary to get to the dead end and suffer from it to become willing to change something. Maybe you can relate. Structure: Well well, the way you write it sounds a little bit rigid to me. I tightened up imagining all that structure you strive for and I'm thinking you should relax a little bit. Or at least I should (and do). So maybe we are different in this regard. I do think you should lay back a bit and think about what really interests you deep down in your heart. I assume you've been working too much on hopelessly boring stuff, because with that I can relate again. I've been working a little bit on a little server in erlang but somehow at some point I couldn't bring myself to working further on it. Well I could, but all the time I felt something was wrong. As I'm happy to learn interesting programming languages and have heard all the hype about lisp for so long (I'm looking at you, pg) I finally gave in and started reading Practical Common Lisp [3] and now Paradigms of Artificial Intelligence Programming [4] and what can I say. I see now that what disappoints me in erlang but also in other languages is having forced upon me one paradigm and/or a rigid set of rules. In the case of erlang that might be perfectly fine as the language can make certain guarantees that way. I've realized though that I would much rather enjoy the lisp-ish freedom while molding a solution. So this is my story of disappointment and fresh wind. One quick addition in the end: In an xkcd comic [5] there is a description of a solution (see the alt-text of the image) that delays access to certain websites (like reddit, hn for me) but does not block them completely. It just delays the access (-- more discussion on the xkcd blog [6]). This serves the purpose of destroying the notion of instant reward these stupid little bits of new information might give you, however irrelevant they may be. I've found this to be helpful for me because sometimes in the past I've procrastinated the hell out of the day. I got fed up with repeatedly spending hours with unproductive stuff and feeling sorry for the time in the end. See the pattern? I needed to run into this problem several times before I decided that I have to change something. I don't want to make some point here. I just find this pattern interesting. What I have done is I have taken an existing little chrome extension called delaybot which by default only delays for rand(1.5) seconds and changed the delay to 30 secs. This has worked wonders in the beginning. I say in the beginning because I've now disabled the extension as it is getting in my way now. No, this is not the procrastinator disabling a helpful little tool. :-) I've found that since I've picked up meditation again I didn't run into this problem anymore anyways. I also tend to just bookmark away a lot of actually interesting discussions to read them later, which of course I never do. I do this bookmarking and closing of tabs because I tend to accumulate too many tabs easily otherwise. Not all is great though, the article made me realise that I'm a little bit too hard with myself when I'm excerting will-power. I try to go through the mentioned lisp books fast (as there are more to come still) and at some point I notice that I can't bring myself to read a lot more at that point. To me this looks similar to the cookie experiment where a group of people is less productive after excerting will power in a previous task. So, to conclude: Even if not all is roses I can say with certainty that meditation is the single most helpful tool to increase my productivity. It changes me from being helpless to being more in control of what I'd like to do with my time. Regarding your lack of passion: Man, search your feelings. If you find something that really interests you, you probably wouldn't think much about what other people could do better than you. That AI book [4] I'm reading? It features ancient techniques at the point where I am right now but it's still a great read and I'm learning a heck of a lot. That's what keeps me going. Also, lisp. Phew, that was long. I would love to hear feedback. :-) [1] http://www.amazon.com/Pragmatic-Thinking-Learning-Refactor-Programmers/dp/1934356050/ http://www.amazon.com/Pragmatic-Thinking-Learning-Refactor-P... [2] http://www.amazon.com/Guided-Mindfulness-Meditation-Jon-Kabat-Zinn/dp/1591793599/ http://www.amazon.com/Guided-Mindfulness-Meditation-Jon-Kaba... [3] http://www.gigamonkeys.com/book/ http://www.gigamonkeys.com/book/ [4] http://www.amazon.com/Paradigms-Artificial-Intelligence-Programming-Studies/dp/1558601910/ http://www.amazon.com/Paradigms-Artificial-Intelligence-Prog... [5] http://xkcd.com/862/ http://xkcd.com/862/ [6] http://blog.xkcd.com/2011/02/18/distraction-affliction-correction-extensio/ http://blog.xkcd.com/2011/02/18/distraction-affliction-corre... EDIT: I've changed the formatting because it renders with long lines otherwise.
wslh 15y ago
I am not so pesimistic about youself, probably because I am I and not you :-) I think hack is a good word for that, but many mental hacks don't work. So here are my suggestions: - How you work with other person? how about pair programming or pair <something> ? may be being a lonely developer is not the answer. - How do you imagine a small team that leverage your strengths and take charge of your weaknesses? can you progress in that environment?
jamesteow 15y ago
I suffer the same thing. I wonder if it's just finding the right project to code.
astrofinch 15y ago
Set an alarm (on your watch, or whatever) to go off every evening. When it goes off, spend a few hours planning the next day. When you wake up the next day, follow your plan. Worked great for me. Gradually, my personality changed and I didn't need to do it any more.

hammock 15y ago

Nothing wrong with googling solutions to code...or is there?

static_cast 15y ago
No I think there isn't. It is effective and often there is probably no other even mildly realistic way to solve some problem in time (e.g. a bug that is reported in the software bug-tracker) I missed to make a concise point with that (concentration anyone?) It's more like 'Googling for a solution' became my default behaviour in most parts of my life. Be it education, food, advice... I think this is dangerous at least for me.

sliverstorm 15y ago

A problem in my Code appears? I'm starting to Google solutions instead of trying to get a complete understanding of the problem. The insidious thing about this is just how effective it is (if you are good at it) Then there is this thought: I would like to do something but there are too much people out there that could it better, so why bother trying? I have my own version of this demon. Everything I can think of to do, I know has been done before, and done better. This knowledge, combined with my need to make things that are new or better, is a terrible roadblock to me.

static_cast 15y ago
> The insidious thing about this is just how effective it is (if you are good at it) Yes, but not if you want to learn something. Then it is disastrous because you skip the "actually solving something" part.
- sliverstorm 15y ago
  Of course! That's why it's insidious.

skybrian 15y ago

There are two things I've tried that work: - programming the router to block all traffic when it's time to go to bed. - installing Chrome nanny and blocking social sites in the morning. I can disable them, but it takes enough effort that I don't. (And I remember that I don't want to.) These aren't full solutions, but I go to bed earlier and start work earlier.

Mz 15y ago

How to solve this problem? Honest question. Honest answer: Consider the possibility that you may have a hidden health issue. Look into that angle. Addressing my own health issues has been the single biggest boost to my productivity, ability to concentrate and ability to stop being a serious hardcore procrastinator. If you simply lack physical energy and ability to concentrate, willpower is not going to overcome it. Best of luck, whatever the answer turns out to be for you.

lostmypw 15y ago

Talking about stuff like this is bound to sound esoteric, I think. So I want to put this disclaimer upfront that I detest esotericism. I can only assume that your problems are similar to mine, so I can only suggest what works for me. And that might not completely work out for you in the end, but it's worth a try for sure. Concentration: The problem of not being able to keep distracting thoughts away can be lessened with meditation. I came across this suggestion in the book Pragmatic Thinking and Learning [1] and have found an excellent CD to listen to called Guided Mindfulness Meditation [2] by Jon Kabat-Zinn. I tend to try to avoid meditation because for a while I seem to do fine and so long as I do fine it just feels like a waste of time for me. Time that I could invest reading a book. But eventually I always end up having an extreme amount of distracting thoughts to the point that I cannot learn anymore. I've now had this problem crop up often enough with meditation always helping that I'm now a lot more willing to spend the time and meditate. I want to emphasize that for *me* it was necessary to get to the dead end and suffer from it to become willing to change something. Maybe you can relate. Structure: Well well, the way you write it sounds a little bit rigid to me. I tightened up imagining all that structure you strive for and I'm thinking you should relax a little bit. Or at least I should (and do). So maybe we are different in this regard. I do think you should lay back a bit and think about what really interests you deep down in your heart. I assume you've been working too much on hopelessly boring stuff, because with that I can relate again. I've been working a little bit on a little server in erlang but somehow at some point I couldn't bring myself to working further on it. Well I could, but all the time I felt something was wrong. As I'm happy to learn interesting programming languages and have heard all the hype about lisp for so long (I'm looking at you, pg) I finally gave in and started reading Practical Common Lisp [3] and now Paradigms of Artificial Intelligence Programming [4] and what can I say. I see now that what disappoints me in erlang but also in other languages is having forced upon me one paradigm and/or a rigid set of rules. In the case of erlang that might be perfectly fine as the language can make certain guarantees that way. I've realized though that I would much rather enjoy the lisp-ish freedom while molding a solution. So this is my story of disappointment and fresh wind. One quick addition in the end: In an xkcd comic [5] there is a description of a solution (see the alt-text of the image) that delays access to certain websites (like reddit, hn for me) but does not block them completely. It just delays the access (-- more discussion on the xkcd blog [6]). This serves the purpose of destroying the notion of instant reward these stupid little bits of new information might give you, however irrelevant they may be. I've found this to be helpful for me because sometimes in the past I've procrastinated the hell out of the day. I got fed up with repeatedly spending hours with unproductive stuff and feeling sorry for the time in the end. See the pattern? I needed to run into this problem several times before I decided that I have to change something. I don't want to make some point here. I just find this pattern interesting. What I have done is I have taken an existing little chrome extension called delaybot which by default only delays for rand(1.5) seconds and changed the delay to 30 secs. This has worked wonders in the beginning. I say in the beginning because I've now disabled the extension as it is getting in my way now. No, this is not the procrastinator disabling a helpful little tool. :-) I've found that since I've picked up meditation again I didn't run into this problem anymore anyways. I also tend to just bookmark away a lot of actually interesting discussions to read them later, which of course I never do. I do this bookmarking and closing of tabs because I tend to accumulate too many tabs easily otherwise. Not all is great though, the article made me realise that I'm a little bit too hard with myself when I'm excerting will-power. I try to go through the mentioned lisp books fast (as there are more to come still) and at some point I notice that I can't bring myself to read a lot more at that point. To me this looks similar to the cookie experiment where a group of people is less productive after excerting will power in a previous task. So, to conclude: Even if not all is roses I can say with certainty that meditation is the single most helpful tool to increase my productivity. It changes me from being helpless to being more in control of what I'd like to do with my time. Regarding your lack of passion: Man, search your feelings. If you find something that really interests you, you probably wouldn't think much about what other people could do better than you. That AI book [4] I'm reading? It features ancient techniques at the point where I am right now but it's still a great read and I'm learning a heck of a lot. That's what keeps me going. Also, lisp. Phew, that was long. I would love to hear feedback. :-) [1] http://www.amazon.com/Pragmatic-Thinking-Learning-Refactor-Programmers/dp/1934356050/ http://www.amazon.com/Pragmatic-Thinking-Learning-Refactor-P... [2] http://www.amazon.com/Guided-Mindfulness-Meditation-Jon-Kabat-Zinn/dp/1591793599/ http://www.amazon.com/Guided-Mindfulness-Meditation-Jon-Kaba... [3] http://www.gigamonkeys.com/book/ http://www.gigamonkeys.com/book/ [4] http://www.amazon.com/Paradigms-Artificial-Intelligence-Programming-Studies/dp/1558601910/ http://www.amazon.com/Paradigms-Artificial-Intelligence-Prog... [5] http://xkcd.com/862/ http://xkcd.com/862/ [6] http://blog.xkcd.com/2011/02/18/distraction-affliction-correction-extensio/ http://blog.xkcd.com/2011/02/18/distraction-affliction-corre... EDIT: I've changed the formatting because it renders with long lines otherwise.

wslh 15y ago

I am not so pesimistic about youself, probably because I am I and not you :-) I think hack is a good word for that, but many mental hacks don't work. So here are my suggestions: - How you work with other person? how about pair programming or pair <something> ? may be being a lonely developer is not the answer. - How do you imagine a small team that leverage your strengths and take charge of your weaknesses? can you progress in that environment?

jamesteow 15y ago

I suffer the same thing. I wonder if it's just finding the right project to code.

astrofinch 15y ago

Set an alarm (on your watch, or whatever) to go off every evening. When it goes off, spend a few hours planning the next day. When you wake up the next day, follow your plan. Worked great for me. Gradually, my personality changed and I didn't need to do it any more.