81–90 of 201 posts
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Pragmatically, if you want to figure out what to do you have to come up with criteria, evaluate your options, and (and this is the hard part) cut 'em loose except for the really important one (or two or three) on which to concentrate.
Good criteria are:
1) Does it help others?
2) Does it make me happy?
-- 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…
-- 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…
It's ok to have a ton of ideas and to let most of them go before you finish the work. The important part is that you document the idea so that you at least have the opportunity to return to it in the future. By this, I mean using pen and paper in some type of journal/notebook that you can browse through either when you are at the computer or away from it. You can get some great spiral bound drawing notebook at the gr…
My second useful realization was that the most popular mindfulness and concentration practices like sitting meditation were not working for me. I had more success with walking meditation, long hikes, martial arts and purposeful reading time.
Another recommendation is to look at latest cognitive science and philosophy for better understanding on how our cognition functions. Lectures by John Vervaeke on YouTube were a great starting place for me, and I recommend them if you’re into that academic style of wisdom. But more important is to find some source of wisdom you trust and willing to take seriously and put effort into making it a part of your life.
> Ask HN: How do I develop focus? Ask your shrink for a Vyvanse/Elvanse prescription.
I would seriously warn you that if you have to quit it later, you will not find it fun at all. Actually it was a nightmare for me because I did it cold turkey, but from what I read people who tapered off also found it quite difficult. You can expect to totally lose productivity at least for a whole week. Also when you're off it even a day, hypersomnia is guaranteed. You're going to be sleeping 16+ hours a day.
Also if you have issues with addiction, it’s probably best to stay away entirely. The mental quieting it’s prescribed for is inferior to that of a good cup of coffee (entirely subjective, YMMV) and there are a whole host of negative physiological and psychological side effects.
2¢ of unsolicited advice: if you need this stuff to keep your brain on track so you can handle your job (especially post-2020), and your doctor suggests it, might be worth considering after exhausting other options — at least that was the case for me, it can be worth it. But if you’re surviving otherwise and just want a focus boost the risk:reward ratio is way off.
Meditate. Expose yourself to the feeling of letting go. Meditate: Literally train your mind to focus. It's going to the gym. Won't happen in a day, week, even month. Consistently do it and you'll eventually see progress. Letting go: I have a long track record of starting while not going deep. Eventually, I just had to jump in the cold water and start letting things go. Literally put away physical gear for hobbies I w…
Indeed! I'd add on -- keep in mind that this focus might be very fleeting at first. You might focus on your breath or mantra for one, maybe two repetitions... and that's it! You've already lost it. You barely made it two seconds and now your mind is drifting and you have to remind yourself to focus. You might've even been drifting or daydreaming for over a minute after only two seconds of focus. That is perfectly normal. It's ok to just try meditation for a couple to a few minutes at first until you get the technique down. You slowly increase how long you can meditate -- keeping one-pointed concentration on your focus -- from a couple seconds, to a few seconds, to minutes, etc. It's like training a muscle. It takes time and effort.
Resources to check out, available free online: The books Mindfulness in Plain English and Keeping the Breath in Mind and Lessons in Samadhi.
So I guess the best way for me to focus is to identify what I want to get out of something. Once I know the benefit/goal, it seems easier to build momentum and complete.
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.