Ask HN: How to increase self-discipline as a self-employed person?

A plan works wonders. Try applying SCRUM on yourself. Set up sprint goals and find someone to demo for, so that you feel the preassure. Also, expose yourself. Angle your screen so that someone else can see what you're doing, so that you feel ashamed when procrastinating. If you have noone else, angle towards the street or share your screen with a partner or something. Have a schedule. Use different logins for work and leasure. I use another wm without distractionware running. Find someone to discuss your approaches with. Working alone increases risk of getting stuck. Planning also helps here. Regularly meet your parners in person, a good time is for demos. Make promises for next time. Stick by your promises. Never over-promise, never under-deliver.

17) is one one the easiest things that gets me motivated. I use minutedock for timetracking, and they allow me to set custom goals. e.g. "20 hours = pay morgage, 40 hours = pay for everything" everything beyond that is luxury.

Boy do I get motivated when I'm looking at not being able to pay my bills and end up just ignoring #1-16. I don't feel much happy, although I know, and my partner keeps telling me the importance of #1-16.

The 5) dog thing is a good point, but I feel I need to be able to be responsible and therefor be able to maintain a proper schedule on my own.

You're also talking about routines in 4) But probably like the OP, I sometimes get up at 9, sometimes noon, sometimes even later. Often my most productive work is in the evening hours, which is a bit meh.

I would love to be able to be productive again during daytime.

If I look at OP's post I'm reading my own book :(

One thing to note is that being self-employed doesn't mean you need to work from home. I always had trouble staying focused at home, and since I have kids working from home is almost impossible for me.

I now rent a desk in a shared office, and I work regular hours. I work 9-4 four days a week. I leave my laptop at work, so I can't do anything except answer the occasional email from home (when the kids let me).

It makes a tremendous difference. When I'm home, I often think of something I want to fix, but since I can't work at home, I have to wait until the next day. When I arrive at the office, I'm already eagerly waiting to get started and most times don't even think about checking HN.

(It doesn't always work. Sometimes I still have trouble focussing, but that was the same when I worked a "normal" job)

I like the idea of leaving the laptop at the shared work place. So often I get the laptop out in the evening, and end up feeling a little burnt out.

Just knowing you won't have your laptop at home I think must really help focus.

I've worked from home for the past 6+ years. I started with several of the routine recommendations below (all good). What I've found over time, however, is that the routine route is -- in most cases -- simply a transfer of traditional office culture to a work environment that is anything but.

My recommendation: embrace flexibility.

Man-made time constraints are no longer part of your world (outside of deadlines). Technology no longer requires that you are chained to a desk. Shake things up to stay fresh. Don't let yourself think 9-5, 5 days. Your life is now 24x7, 365 and you are in control of how you use those hours.

That said, there are some spot-on recommendations here by others based on my experience:

* Exercise. I've taken calls on 50mi bike rides and from roadside taverns. Helps to have a buddy you can draft off during the calls.

* Nutrition. Laptop on counter. Work. Cook.

* Standing desk. You'll find yourself moving around a lot more rather than slouching in a chair and never leaving your monitor. On that, if you have the means, spread devices around your house. Mix up your screen time.

* Get up early. This one took some time, but is perhaps the biggest thing you can do. It jumpstarts everything.

* Sunday night scheduling. I believe it was Tim Ferris' 4-hour workweek that started this. Sunday night, write down what you want/must accomplish over the next week. When it's done, it's done. Doesn't matter whether it's Tuesday or Sunday.

* IM. IM. IM. Some see random IM conversations as interruptions to be avoided. They aren't. They are your watercooler, your vent, your muse. Embrace them.

Good luck! It's a great adventure.