Ask HN: Solo developer, what's your recipe to start working?

You should first accept that any time you have already wasted, was always going to be wasted, and thereby free yourself from regret.

While employed I was super productive on side-projects on weekends and after work, but when I had entire days to do as I please, all motivation came to an abrupt halt. I couldn't get back into flow. The motivation dissipated. Distractions took over. Projects felt like mountains to climb without being able to enter flow mode. Without flow its amazing how little you can actually get done in a day.

What worked for me eventually was getting back into flow via any means necessary - and not by working on the thing I most wanted to build.

Procrastination is the key to escaping procrastination.

Working on the thing that I want to turn into a successful business made me feel overwhelmed and stressed, and therefore led to procrastination.

The trick is to get back into a flow state, and then when in this state regularly, you shift across to the project that you should be working on. When in flow the feeling of "if I didn't need to sleep I could get anything done right now" is what you are after.

First, I like to get myself back in front on the computer, by doing some menial task. Like changing your vulnerable passwords in Chrome, or organizing your repos on Github, or cleaning up your bookmarks or browser profiles.

So now you are off the couch and doing stuff. These small, easy tasks, can generate a moderate flow.

Now, pick some small trivial thing that you want to fix or build. Like a bug in an open-source project that bothers you. Or a simple static website that does one silly thing that makes your life easier. Something that is going to help other people or involve collaborating with other people is a good idea - which is why a Github issue is a good. As a developer on a team, you often don't realize how much motivation you draw on from your colleagues. You grind on stuff to make your colleagues lives easier, to impress them, to push the shared company vision further, etc. Even just one other person impacted by what you are doing can be a huge boost in motivation. This is why 2 founders are better than 1 IMHO.

So once you are back into flowing, interrupt yourself to work a bit on the project you really want to work on. Don't say "okay now I am full focus on the real thing I want to do" - make it feel like a procrastination of the thing you are currently doing. Then bang - you have tricked your procrastinating mind.

Its good to take breaks from the thing you are working via other side projects - just the same as you did when you were working - but be careful to not stray too far into something too complex.

Other things that help:

- Podcasts - Listen to morning podcasts with people talking about coding.

- Twitter - Listen to tech conversations. Although Twitter is a big source of procrastination it can also be a good motivator and way to feel less isolated.

- Exercise - Runner's high is super powerful to get motivated - but it will give you a high that dissipates unless you adequately use it to enter flow. It can be counter-productive so don't waste time after a workout before you start coding.

- Alcohol (caution) - If you get stuck in "analysis paralysis" or really can't get going, alcohol is a great way to jump start things. Sometimes I will pour myself a beer, and without even drinking it, I feel this rush of motivation, and I get going on things I put off for ages. It is powerful at taking away mental roadblocks and unleashing great motivation, but the [Balmer Peak](https://xkcd.com/323/) is real! Motivation quickly tapers off. However, it is very dangerous in the long-term. Reliance can creep in quickly - but it can be useful as break yourself out of a rut.

This assumes that you can be instantly productive in the 3hr work blocks. If you can't get into a flow for the first hour, then you only have 2 hours, etc. And you start to look forward to your breaks.

Flow works best when you have open-ended working sessions. If you are making good progress - don't stop it for lunch. Grab something quick, and then have a larger dinner.

Whack-a-mole reverse linter, the next big thing...