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Ask HN: How Can I Be More Hardworking?

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Re: Ask HN: How Can I Be More Hardworking?

#41

Post by greenyouse »

I think the most important thing is wanting to do something. The problem in front of you shouldn't just be work - you should actually be interested in solving it.

That would probably range from something that's so easy you just want to drop the hammer and knock it out to a massive problem that you'll spend months or years chipping away at. Either way if you really are interested in working on it you'll think about it in the background and approach solutions from multiple angles. When you're excited about working on the problem you'll have no issues with working more than 10 hours per week if that's what it takes.

Everybody is different but I've found that when a problem is actually fun to work on "productivity" techniques don't really do much. It's mostly making a plan for what to do, working a bit, learning more, and either solving or starting the work cycle over again with new information.

So I think you probably need to work on more problems that you're actually interested in.

Re: Ask HN: How Can I Be More Hardworking?

#42

Post by muzani »

quickthrower2 wrote: post #40
MaxBarraclough wrote: post #30

You've had a really poor response from the HN community here. Barely a single comment even attempts to speak to your question! HN is normally pretty good at resisting Sturgeon's Law, but not today. muzani isn't asking to be talked out of working more hours, everyone. Anyway, my suggestion: it sounds like you work alone. Maybe try working with other people, for a day or two per week. (I don't know if that's compatible…

It’s be useful to know why this person wants to work more though. Assuming it’s to have a purpose in life, then the answer is to find that purpose. Alternatively there are plenty of open source projects that need a maintainer.

Well, the purpose is to be able to finish more projects. Just like a rock star wants to create some magnum opus.

But just having a purpose is not good enough, as a good purpose tends to be intimidating. If a man wants to climb Everest, they still need to build up the stamina for it.

Re: Ask HN: How Can I Be More Hardworking?

#43

Post by muzani »

greenyouse wrote: post #41

I think the most important thing is wanting to do something. The problem in front of you shouldn't just be work - you should actually be interested in solving it. That would probably range from something that's so easy you just want to drop the hammer and knock it out to a massive problem that you'll spend months or years chipping away at. Either way if you really are interested in working on it you'll think about it…

This worked well a year into my first job. After several death marches, I've developed an aversion to work. The problems are still interesting and it's hard to stop when I start, but starting has become increasingly more difficult.

You're probably right in that productivity techniques don't work. They treat the symptom but not the root.

Re: Ask HN: How Can I Be More Hardworking?

#44

Post by muzani »

Wowfunhappy wrote: post #38
kanox wrote: post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why is the top answer to "how can I work more" always "work less"? If you don't agree with that the poster is trying to do just don't answer instead of undermining their motivation.

Because the question is impossible to answer without an understanding of why they want to work more.

Why is the motivation important? I mean if you see any athlete trying to increase physical stamina, they'd get a few responses. Why not mental stamina?

Re: Ask HN: How Can I Be More Hardworking?

#45

Post by muzani »

rchaud wrote: post #25

It sounds like you're trying to deal with boredom rather than a need to work harder. Working from home only ~10 hrs/week, I could certainly see myself going a little stir-crazy. Have you considered changing your routine a bit? Maybe try working from a coffee shop, or rent a co-working office for a couple of months.

I've tried working from other places. It's actually a little less effective. It's tempting to procrastinate other ways - walking a little further for lunch, taking long walks around the nice co-working building, or just making small talk with people.

Coffee places tend to cut the internet after an hour, which straight up kills flow. I have issues starting, not continuing work, and this limited time brings enough dread to not start at all.

Re: Ask HN: How Can I Be More Hardworking?

#46

Post by muzani »

arandr0x wrote: post #19

This was my life in college and I eventually realized I just had an above average prioritization mechanism. If it doesn't really matter, and I don't feel like doing it, it's not getting done. It's actually pretty productive at baseline since I can do the things that do matter lightning fast, so if you're like that, just try to do more things/more varied things (for example start a class not related to your job or get…

This is true. I think I get paid way more per hour than average, and a good reason is doing things quickly and effectively.

However, the bottleneck is just doing more work. I do secondary less paid jobs like teaching and mentoring for events, where I can work 10 hours per day just fine, because it's mostly physical/social. But it doesn't help things and makes me too tired to be productive coding, which is where the real money is.

Re: Ask HN: How Can I Be More Hardworking?

#47

Post by muzani »

maceurt wrote: post #28
geezerjay wrote: post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Perhaps because a desire to spend more time working is, in the grand scheme of things, a colossal mistake. You get top answers advising the OP to work less because some of us lived through the same problem and in the end realized what a colossal mistake it is to waste your life living to work instead of working to live. How many people have laid in their deathbed complaining how they didn't spent more time at the off…

I disagree with this. Some people do not want to have families, and some people are really competitive and ambitious. Not everyone's goal is to spend their time with others or leisure. Furthermore, I know for myself I feel like shit after a lot of social activity or leisure, and feel actually really great after working for a long amount of time. The only hard part is starting.

This hits the nail on the head. I feel like shit after too much social activity, and feel great after working very hard. I thought it was a given that everyone feels better after it and didn't see the need to mention reason in OP.

Re: Ask HN: How Can I Be More Hardworking?

#48

Post by Wowfunhappy »

muzani wrote: post #44
Wowfunhappy wrote: post #38

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Because the question is impossible to answer without an understanding of why they want to work more.

Why is the motivation important? I mean if you see any athlete trying to increase physical stamina, they'd get a few responses. Why not mental stamina?

Athletes want to be able to run faster, jump higher, etc.

If OP's question was "How can I become better at coding", or even "how can I code for more hours of the day before feeling burnt out," I think the responses would be quite different.

Re: Ask HN: How Can I Be More Hardworking?

#49

Post by arandr0x »

muzani wrote: post #46
arandr0x wrote: post #19

This was my life in college and I eventually realized I just had an above average prioritization mechanism. If it doesn't really matter, and I don't feel like doing it, it's not getting done. It's actually pretty productive at baseline since I can do the things that do matter lightning fast, so if you're like that, just try to do more things/more varied things (for example start a class not related to your job or get…

This is true. I think I get paid way more per hour than average, and a good reason is doing things quickly and effectively. However, the bottleneck is just doing more work. I do secondary less paid jobs like teaching and mentoring for events, where I can work 10 hours per day just fine, because it's mostly physical/social. But it doesn't help things and makes me too tired to be productive coding, which is where the r…

So it is for more money.

At 10h/week I'm assuming you're a consultant. Have you tried accepting more jobs than you feel you can do (not a lot, a little more) and then giving the client a deadline? It's not usually recommended because it's stressful but you're essentially having issues not having a boss and as a freelancer the clients are your boss.

It seems like your efforts to work more are very self-directed (working on ideas you had vs things customers are asking for) -- in my experience some clients will definitely bring you metric tons of coffee and breathe down your neck for hours if you'd let them, so doing client work may be easier (and well, more lucrative). Smaller clients are more agile(/annoying). Clients who are local are more likely to engage in high-pressure behavior to remind you they're important, like, pick up the phone.

Re: Ask HN: How Can I Be More Hardworking?

#50

Post by MaxBarraclough »

muzani wrote: post #39
MaxBarraclough wrote: post #30

You've had a really poor response from the HN community here. Barely a single comment even attempts to speak to your question! HN is normally pretty good at resisting Sturgeon's Law, but not today. muzani isn't asking to be talked out of working more hours, everyone. Anyway, my suggestion: it sounds like you work alone. Maybe try working with other people, for a day or two per week. (I don't know if that's compatible…

Yeah, that sounds like something I haven't tried. I actually work really well remotely; my most productive time was idling in chat rooms. But unfortunately, forums like this and reddit are too distracting. I'm not so fond of coworking spaces as they come with productivity hits of their own. Oddly enough, it is quite reassuring that there are not a lot of helpful responses, because it means it's a problem that nobody…

I think arandr0x has captured the reason for the poor replies -- people aren't clear on what it is you're really after.

If you're committed to work that's fundamentally just you working alone, there's probably not as much value in my suggestion as I'd hoped.

Even so, perhaps finding some way of turning your planned extra-work-day-per-week into a formal commitment, would help.

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