I hope to be working outside the house soon. That will change a lot since I am not distracted by stuff that goes on here. (Live across tram track, hospital and behind all that there is a firehouse)
Fooling myself to work
31–40 of 81 posts
Re: Fooling myself to work
#32I can not recall that exact title of the book something about ants and elephants (looked on amazon - did not recognize those books) but these are my takeaways from it: 1. state your goals 2. write down your milestones - must be actual measurable metrics 3. write reasons why you will not reach them - expect the unexpected; yes you can not expect all the unexpected but this is preparing you so that when there are issue…
That last one is similar to my litmus test for Akrasia [http://wikipedia.org/wiki/Akrasia]:
1. How certain are you that you *want* to do it?
2. How certain are you that you *can* do it?
3. How certain are you that you *will* do it?
Re: Fooling myself to work
#33That was a great read until I realized he was mentioning the To-Do List software way to much... great way to let people buy your software :).
Re: Fooling myself to work
#34A pretty good list of tips, however I've gotten more mileage over the years by digging deeper into my procrastination to understand its roots. Most often than not there is some fear or dissatisfaction tied to the procrastination that needs to be heard. Checking in with myself and becoming aware of these deeper feelings forms the foundation on which long term productivity is possible.
If it takes 5 minutes or less, do it immediately, because scheduling it takes more time.
This is the one piece of advise I follow religiously. The dividends are amazing. Less clutter, a feeling of accomplishment, appearance of responsiveness to others, and a happier girlfriend.
Re: Fooling myself to work
#35#9 is perhaps the best tip (start thinking about your most important task before you goto sleep). Particularly in combination with #3 (do a specific task first thing when you wake up and start at the computer). I find that 'working momentum' is highest beginning as soon as the computer turns on in the morning. For this reason, each day I will typically schedule 3 hours of focus on one specific task/project/vision; be…
I personally do the complete opposite - avoid thinking about work stuff before sleep. I believe you should take some time for yourself, doing the thing you like other than working, and thinking about/doing that. Being relaxed and not thinking about problems is the best way for me to get a good night of sleep and be refreshed for the next day. Ofc, there are points where thinking about work before sleep is necessary and/or unavoidable.
Thinking about work all the time, especially before going to sleep, makes me feel like I am living to work, instead of working to live. Setting the boundaries actually made me more productive.
Re: Fooling myself to work
#36Tried all that. Work for some days, then I completely start to forget to check my notes for whats next and idle on the internets
Re: Fooling myself to work
#37In a recent radiolab, other tricks creatives use were discussed:
Re: Fooling myself to work
#38Earlier quoted context omitted.
Thanks for the advice! I've removed the extra links. For some reason, it has never occurred to me.
For some reason, it has never occurred to me. Probably your software is so inextricably part of your life that the thought of a world (let alone a blog post) without it never occurs to you. It's a good post. The reason you're getting criticized ("spammy", "self-promoting", etc.) is that it breaks the informal conventions that have evolved for such hybrid (good content plus product promotion) posts. One is to give the…
That makes perfect sense. Thank you for the detailed explanation, I see the issue now clearly. I've learned something.
Re: Fooling myself to work
#39I actually like your advice but it's such an obvious sales pitch for your software. Your ulterior motives make me nauseous. P.S. I would probably try your software if it wasn't stuck in windows land. Why not make a WebApp?
Your ulterior motives make me nauseous. FWIW: nauseous is to nauseated as poisonous is to poisoned.
You are incorrect.
nau·seous adj \ˈnȯ-shəs, ˈnȯ-zē-əs\ Definition of NAUSEOUS
1 : causing nausea or disgust : nauseating 2 : affected with nausea or disgust — nau·seous·ly adverb — nau·seous·ness noun See nauseous defined for English-language learners » Usage Discussion of NAUSEOUS
Those who insist that nauseous can properly be used only in sense 1 and that in sense 2 it is an error for nauseated are mistaken. Current evidence shows these facts: nauseous is most frequently used to mean physically affected with nausea, usually after a linking verb such as feel or become; figurative use is quite a bit less frequent. Use of nauseous in sense 1 is much more often figurative than literal, and this use appears to be losing ground to nauseating. Nauseated is used more widely than nauseous in sense 2.
-- Merriam-Webster
Re: Fooling myself to work
#40I can not recall that exact title of the book something about ants and elephants (looked on amazon - did not recognize those books) but these are my takeaways from it: 1. state your goals 2. write down your milestones - must be actual measurable metrics 3. write reasons why you will not reach them - expect the unexpected; yes you can not expect all the unexpected but this is preparing you so that when there are issue…
That last one is similar to my litmus test for Akrasia [ http://wikipedia.org/wiki/Akrasia ]: 1. How certain are you that you *want* to do it? 2. How certain are you that you *can* do it? 3. How certain are you that you *will* do it? If your answers are "absolutely", "definitely", and "given historical evidence, not entirely" then this is classic akrasia. I think the only solution in that case is some form of self-bi…
Very interesting.
Here is a nice synopsis of a case studied in the Influencer book about the Carter Center helping to rid Guinea worm infections in several African countries: http://www.joshhunt.com/mail215.htm
I have problem accepting your conclusion from your blog:To make the long-term consequences of failing at your goal immediate, you need a bright and painful line.
I think it more complex than that, which you alluded to earlier. I am constantly trying to be a better me. Losing money would not be an incentive to me if milestones were not met as you recommended.
The book, "Change or Die", talks about Dick Cheney needing a yearly heart bypass and then finally getting $6M/invested in chefs/fitness trainers/doctors/retrofitted planes to change himself (basically to exercise 1 hour a day). This is even before his recent massive weight loss.
It also talks about, people with fatal diseases that refuse to take their daily meds as required. Why? I mean it is fatal. They will die.
Taking the pill every day made them realize they were dying. Forgetting to do so, made them have a happier less depressing day. I guess quality versus quantity. In this case if the pill was somehow better integrated, so they would not notice it much and reflect so much, they might consistently take it.
I also liked this synopsis of take aways from this MS project manager about the Influencer. the Power to Change Anything: http://sourcesofinsight.com/2009/06/09/influencer-the-power-...
Also, you may have already seen this, Sendhil Mullainathan's, "THE IRONY OF POVERTY" http://www.edge.org/documents/archive/edge263.html in which he talks one such problem diarrhea causing infant deaths and how to successfully change the mental model of the parents to save infant lives.
I have not yet read PG's essay.The Wikipedia article was a nice read. Thanks!
PS There are some interesting books on how train and change behaviors in animals since I think in end we more like animals than we care to admit.