As an addendum for #2, discern whether it is just the current phase of the project or cycle in the company that's boring, or if it's everything. Most projects

As an addendum for #2, discern whether it is just the current phase of the project or cycle in the company that's boring, or if it's everything. Most projects have at least some drudgery that you have to power through. Where I work, there's a distinct yearly cycle and this part of the year is quite dull. I was actually getting discouraged a few weeks ago until I remembered feeling the same way this time last year and caught a glimpse the big picture. During this period of unchallenging work, #3 is super important. If I allow myself to browse (like I'm doing right now... oops) then there goes the morning. I've found podcasts to be perfect for distracting the instant gratification monkey in my head while still allowing me to get work done. When development requires thought again it'll be non-vocal music or silence, but for the mindless debugging and patching going on right now a bit of intelligent chatter is just right.