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Ask HN: How do I develop focus?

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Re: Ask HN: How do I develop focus?

#71

Post by wengo314 »

ChildOfChaos wrote: post #66
FWKevents wrote: post #23

-- Limit your time on social media to 20 minutes or less a day (LinkedIn/Facebook/Discord use that's related to work is an exception.) No studies exist yet to support this hypothesis, but it's my observation that longtime exposure to social media impedes overall focus. -- Limit your TV watching to one or two hours on the weekends, per week -- Limit video game use to one or two hours per week -- Find an activity you l…

-- Wake up early and try to accomplish something significant before 8am I always hate this piece of advice, if i wake up early, even if I am able to struggle through getting 'something significant done' before 8am i'm going to feel terrible for the rest of the day since i got up early, it's not worth it at all. This advice is nonsense and not universal, yet the same nonsense is constantly repeated. I understand it ca…

to me it's totally worth it. morning hours are very quiet. i usually do my daily flashcards session during that time. and sometimes a small workout as well.

if you feel terrible waking up that early - go to bed earlier as well. you need that sleep.

Re: Ask HN: How do I develop focus?

#72

Post by giraffe_lady »

nont wrote: post #34
FWKevents wrote: post #23

-- Limit your time on social media to 20 minutes or less a day (LinkedIn/Facebook/Discord use that's related to work is an exception.) No studies exist yet to support this hypothesis, but it's my observation that longtime exposure to social media impedes overall focus. -- Limit your TV watching to one or two hours on the weekends, per week -- Limit video game use to one or two hours per week -- Find an activity you l…

HN for me is also a form of social media, especially if you find yourself checking it all the time.

Yeah it's always hilarious to me when conversations on here will talk about the effects of social media while clearly not intending to include HN.

Just because we have a socially enforced style guide and no infinite scroll doesn't mean it's not social media.

Re: Ask HN: How do I develop focus?

#73

Post by ChildOfChaos »

gexla wrote: post #63

Do you have full time employment? I think you have to be aware of how limited our time is. If you have a full time job, there is very little time outside of that to do anything. The trouble is that a job also drains a lot of your energy, so working on anything on the side after work is going to put you at the edge of overdoing it. It's really hard to focus on this state as it is. Personally, I can get 4 good hours ou…

Ugh hits hard.

At the moment I try to exercise for an hour a day, i'm learning to code in Swift with lessons that are roughly an hour a day and do an hour of guitar of guitar a day plus try to keep a few other things going and it's so difficult with a full time job, but else if you don't do it, life is just work and then home and repeat, how are you ever meant to develop yourself?

Re: Ask HN: How do I develop focus?

#74

Post by Dobbs »

wengo314 wrote: post #71
ChildOfChaos wrote: post #66

Earlier quoted context omitted.

-- Wake up early and try to accomplish something significant before 8am I always hate this piece of advice, if i wake up early, even if I am able to struggle through getting 'something significant done' before 8am i'm going to feel terrible for the rest of the day since i got up early, it's not worth it at all. This advice is nonsense and not universal, yet the same nonsense is constantly repeated. I understand it ca…

to me it's totally worth it. morning hours are very quiet. i usually do my daily flashcards session during that time. and sometimes a small workout as well. if you feel terrible waking up that early - go to bed earlier as well. you need that sleep.

Some people find early hours to be very productive, some people find noon hours to be really productive, and finally some people find evening hours to be really productive. What works for you won't necessarily work for everyone else and pretending otherwise is harmful to all who don't fit your life/body/etc.

Re: Ask HN: How do I develop focus?

#75

Post by s0teri0s »

To make a decision on what to develop, you can do an analysis on your ideas. Come up with categories like Cost to Develop, Effort in Time, Who/How Many Will Benefit, Profit Potential, etc. Score each idea based on these categories, weight them according to your own priorities, and whatever floats to the top is the one you should focus on first. Getting one or two outside objective opinions might be a good idea to help keep your scoring honest.

Re: Ask HN: How do I develop focus?

#76

Post by ravenstine »

PragmaticPulp wrote: post #36
ravenstine wrote: post #18

- Frequently re-evaluate which projects matter the most. Have no more than 2 in mind at a time. Everything else is added to your backlog. - Always try to scale down your projects, avoid making them too grandiose to be achievable. - Try to achieve at least one thing in what you are trying to focus on every day, no matter how small. - Embrace pivoting. When we pivot to new projects, it probably means the last idea may…

> - Consider getting a prescription for Concerta or Adderall if other ways of finding focus don’t work. No, consider talking to a mental health professional for a proper evaluation if you think mental health issues are underlying part of your problem. Don’t go in seeking a specific diagnosis or specific medications. This is literally called “drug-seeking behavior” and reputable doctors will flag you for it. Accept th…

I understand your concern, but I don't agree with how far you've taken it.

> No, consider talking to a mental health professional for a proper evaluation if you think mental health issues are underlying part of your problem.

Is that not implied by the prescription part? I even left it for last in that list for a reason.

> Accept that stimulants aren’t magical motivation or self-discipline in pill form.

It certainly can help with motivation if we set aside the "magical" part. A person with ADHD taking a stimulant isn't going to have their interests changed or their self-motivation, but it certainly helps in staying focused on things a normal person can do but is not necessarily interested in, like chores and boring desk work that needs to get done.

> This is literally called “drug-seeking behavior” and reputable doctors will flag you for it.

Sure, don't try to game the system by faking a disease. Agreed, but that wasn't really what I was suggesting, as much as I could have been more specific in my language.

> I’m seeing too many non-ADHD young people seek prescriptions and then burn themselves out, develop a dependency on a drug they didn’t need, and find themselves in worse condition when they realize that the energizing effects of stimulants don’t last forever.

Well, I really don't know much about that. Then again, I don't live in Silicon Valley. This is really not relevant to those who have legitimate issues focusing. When people genuinely complain that they can't focus, that's usually because that focus isn't merely short-term. There's a difference between ADHD and those trying to brain-max themselves. Stimulants can really change the life of a person with ADHD and there's plenty of evidence that not only is ADHD real but that stimulants help. Your statement about being flagged by doctors does little but scare people off from getting help.

There's nothing wrong in seeking a drug-based solution. If a prescription drug can help someone with a condition, it would be foolish to avoid it merely because some people will abuse it.

Re: Ask HN: How do I develop focus?

#77

Post by marcodiego »

There are 2 kinds of focus I try to keep: "short term focus" for tasks that must do done now and continuously for at most few hours and "long term focus" that is basically like building habits.

To improve short term focus, I exercise with pleasurable tasks which require dedication and concentration. It can't be video-games or anything that promote a dopamine rush. It must be something that I have to do with attention and concentration for a time and feel the benefits only after I finish it. My favorites for this are playing guitar (classic guitar, pop guitar does not requires the same level of concentration or dedication) and reading a book. Sometimes I go out for a walk just to free my mind.

To improve long term focus I try to avoid addicting behaviors, like when I turn on the computer and I have to resist the urge to browse the web or read unrelated news (or wikipedia rabbit holes) instead of working. I do like the AA guys, when I fell the urge to procrastinate, I think: "Just for today", like in "Just for today I won't browse the web before reading and answering my e-mails." The day after, I just think: "one day at a time" and simply do the same again.

From what you suggest, it looks like you need focus to complete interesting projects. My technique for this is: start with the hardest part: if it is really hard and boring you'll probably abandon it without investing too much time. On the other hand, if you complete the hardest part, you'll have a very good reason not to abandon the project: the hardest part is already done!

Sometimes I give up in the middle of a project because it is taking too long... try a smaller project the next time. Sometimes I quit a project because it is too complex... try a simpler project next time. You want big and complex projects? Break it in smaller simpler projects that are easy and fun to complete.

Re: Ask HN: How do I develop focus?

#78

Post by ChildOfChaos »

wengo314 wrote: post #71
ChildOfChaos wrote: post #66

Earlier quoted context omitted.

-- Wake up early and try to accomplish something significant before 8am I always hate this piece of advice, if i wake up early, even if I am able to struggle through getting 'something significant done' before 8am i'm going to feel terrible for the rest of the day since i got up early, it's not worth it at all. This advice is nonsense and not universal, yet the same nonsense is constantly repeated. I understand it ca…

to me it's totally worth it. morning hours are very quiet. i usually do my daily flashcards session during that time. and sometimes a small workout as well. if you feel terrible waking up that early - go to bed earlier as well. you need that sleep.

Personally I always don't feel great in the mornings, I usually need a few hours to fully wake up and function and I don't like going to bed early, why should I? Those hours are my quiet hours and are the hours that I like.

I get it though, it's what works for you. So you should do that, but it's not universal advice, people that find it works just think others should go to bed earlier and follow what they do and poof! like magic everything is amazing

Re: Ask HN: How do I develop focus?

#79

Post by ChrisMarshallNY »

ChildOfChaos wrote: post #66
FWKevents wrote: post #23

-- Limit your time on social media to 20 minutes or less a day (LinkedIn/Facebook/Discord use that's related to work is an exception.) No studies exist yet to support this hypothesis, but it's my observation that longtime exposure to social media impedes overall focus. -- Limit your TV watching to one or two hours on the weekends, per week -- Limit video game use to one or two hours per week -- Find an activity you l…

-- Wake up early and try to accomplish something significant before 8am I always hate this piece of advice, if i wake up early, even if I am able to struggle through getting 'something significant done' before 8am i'm going to feel terrible for the rest of the day since i got up early, it's not worth it at all. This advice is nonsense and not universal, yet the same nonsense is constantly repeated. I understand it ca…

I think it depends on the person.

I’m a “morning person.” My wife is definitely not.

For me, I enjoy getting up at 5 (actually, it takes a while to get to the “enjoy” part). I walk a couple of miles, take a shower, and often fix a number of issues before 8.

One of the most productive developers I ever knew (a former employee) was a “non-morning person.” He would amble into the office at noon. Drove HR crazy, but all attempts to get him to come in earlier, met with failure. He would often stay in past 2AM.

As his manager, I got flak for his schedule, but I put my own job in jeopardy, and did not enforce corporate policy on him. We worked together for almost 27 years. Japan loved him (so my job wasn’t actually in jeopardy). His schedule worked for them.

We tend to have a habit of projecting what works for us, onto others.

Re: Ask HN: How do I develop focus?

#80

Post by kache_ »

you gotta have a goal and really really really want it

if you don't have a goal, you're just nnot going to do it. It's really easy to focus when you have a deadline, so just set up deadlines on yourself

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