71–80 of 111 posts
Ditched multiplayer roleplaying games: I found I was mostly playing these games out of desperation for meaningful interaction and chatting. Though I've replaced that with Discord servers now, so perhaps I should cut that out too.
I ditched my smartphone and opted for a dumb phone instead. For me, having a smartphone made my distractibility even worse than it naturally is (I have ADD). Also, I no longer hear the siren call of the internet calling to me everywhere I go.
Was it hard to make the transition? I wish I could get rid of my smart phone, but I'm so dependent on lyft, my gps, etc, that it's hard to separate the addictive parts from the parts that are really useful.
* Stop looking for "opportunities" until I need one. This means entertaining recruiters, personal branding, networking, coupons/free stuff, freelance sites, side projects, meeting sales people. 80% of errands I didn't want came from this. The only exception is helping people who ask for help.
* Getting the hardest thing done a day. Sometimes this means getting rest and sleeping at 9 PM.
* If it feels bad to the point I rant for nights to my wife about it, get rid of it. Fire that guy, send that email, yell at the boss, quit that job, destroy that rival. Sometimes it costs me all my daily willpower to do this one thing, and I end up too tired to do anything else. It's always worth it.
* Focus days. Basically these totally monastic days, where I stay away from all entertainment and think on a problem, except for family time. You know that moment you get an idea in the shower? When avoiding all entertainment, you get that moment all day, and it wanders off to something useful, not about how to optimize my build for a game.
* Never directly working past 6 PM. Daydreaming about work is fine but don't write anything.
* Getting 7 hours of sleep a night. 1 extra hour of sleep allowed 2 more hours of difficult work.
* L-Theanine
* Exercise regularly in mornings.
* Disposable prototypes. If I feel unsure if something could be done or unsure how to do it, build something that will be disposed later. Forcing myself to throw it away also keeps me from adding stuff I don't actually need and keeps me from paralyzing perfectionism.
* Don't emotionally focus on something. Bad things hurt, but focus on getting back up or away from the pain. Don't let it distract.
* Yes, fear/depression/anger increase productivity 500%. But the side effects are very bad.
I'm not as productive as I'd like to be in my side projects. So I'm trying something new that I started 2 days ago: Quitting video games ENTIRELY.
Here's my theory:
Video games are really fun. The instant gratification of landing a head shot. The skill, investment, and reward of becoming better, and better. The social atmosphere of team based coordination... These things have become my expectation for what is "fun" and "interesting". Years of gaming has reset my subconscious view of the world. How can reading compete with the excitement you get from a round of CS:GO? How can my mind be pulled to work on a long running side project, when I get stimulation and excitement from a game? I need to give my willpower a break, and reset my expectations of what "fun" is.
I'm going on a 30 -> 60 -> 90 day video game "detox" to assess whether or not my productivity (and other mental health factors) benefit.
In the first day (Saturday) I was far more productive around the house, because I was bored. I would not allow myself to play video games, so I took care of shit that I'd been putting off for months. So far, so good. I'll continue to monitor and see if this has been a net positive, or net negative decision (or neutral).
I became more efficient at work, with clear goal in mind that I had to finish my daily work in order to meet my hard-set deadline of 6pm. I was able to really focus and concentrate with greater intensity, since I couldn't do more work at home.
There were also other unintended benefits.
Not having internet at home allowed my mind to be free from "distractions" at home. At home, my mind was still engaged in the work-related stuff. In order to switch gears and to unwind, I was spending time on Youtube and mindless entertainment, but more often, I was vegging out and becoming an internet couch-potato.
Now, I tend to spend more time with the family, and I am able to focus on people and not technology. I am free from the burden of FOMO. I am thinking more clearly and creatively. I have more time for hobbies and side projects. If I really needed to Google something , I'd use my phone for quick search (again, being limited to 1GB limit so I didn't get side-tracked). I can't procrastinate by going on the net and getting lost in endless research.
And since I couldn't be online while at home, I was unconsciously building good habits. I am reading more books (and buying more paper-based books instead of e-books/Kindle books). I am writing more, journaling more, and getting more exercises and working out. I'm also sleeping better and no longer have insomnia, probably due to limited screen time in the evening.
I also became more selective of the type of entertainment, preferring quality over quantity, and elminating my binge-watching. Instead, I watch movies on Bluray/DVD and is a much better viewing experience. I recommend Netflix (snail mail service, not the online version).
During weekends, I have an excuse to go to a local coffee shop with good coffee and fast internet connection. For dealing with urgent issues that come up during off-hours, I can use my pre-paid LTE hotspot (Karma).
I also use my phone less, and now I use it mostly for maps, weather, and email.
If cutting the cord is not an option, an alternative is to set the parental control on the wifi router and use time restriction to block internet during evening and on weekends.
Also having good set of tools AND having mastery over them are important, but that's another topic.
Went to my doctor for the first time about what turned out to be undiagnosed/untreated comorbid depression and ADHD. I was apprehensive and avoided it for years but it's easily been one of the best decisions I've ever made. I was losing so much time to the vicious cycle of not wanting to do anything but lay in bed, then feeling crappy that I wasn't doing anything, then trying to focus but constantly geting distracted…
If you don't mind me asking: What kind of doctor did you see? What do you say when you want to make an appointment? Lately I've been wanting to talk to a doctor, but I get very hung up on who I need to see and how to kick off the conversation about how I've been feeling.
1) Taking Modafinil[1][2] semi-regularly. I've always had problems focusing and being productive. Honestly I've always wondered if I have some form of ADD or something. I used to drink large amounts of caffeine but the effects after long term use declines dramatically due to tolerance and I found out I was lactose intolerant. So I tried Modafinil after hearing a lot about it. I personally find it to be an extremely u…
The problem is, even if you do contract work, or work remotely for a flexible company, you're beholden to your partner's sleep/wake cycle as well.
Serving in the army (and actually going to war, which is a nightmare, for a brief period): 1. It helps you get discipline right, and care less about "productivity" and "motivation" - you just do stuff. 2. It teaches you that your reserves and powers are limited, and priorities are an hourly grind of making the right choices. 3. It teaches you to stay sharp all the time, no matter what your body tells you to feel. Not…
Got married and had kids. Before that, I was happy working a 30k/year job, coming home and playing video games every day. It was a simpler, and more blissful time, but I was not progressing in any way.