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>> and 75% procrastination. I laughed at this and it's true. But I would like to champion a bit of procrastination in creative pursuits. I know the way my mind
by eludwig 10y ago
>> and 75% procrastination.
I laughed at this and it's true. But I would like to champion a bit of procrastination in creative pursuits. I know the way my mind works and the simple truth is that sometimes it pays to wait until my head has worked through what feels like an incessant cycle of building up possible approaches and relentlessly tearing them down.
So lets say I'm given an assignment (or a stand-along idea occurs to me). I immediately start to visualize possible outcomes and the approaches that I would need to take to get there. I throw out 99% of these subconsciously. Some of these ideas don't even make it into a full-blown thought, but they are there lurking below the surface. All of this takes some time. Subjectively, it just doesn't feel like the right time to start yet.
This may look like procrastination, but it isn't. I'm not arguing for always waiting until every detail is mapped out in my mind to begin an effort, but sometimes it pays to let your head work through stuff for a bit.
Of course, moderation in everything (including moderation).
- MyNameIsFred 10y agoYes! Sometimes I will have a have a big problem that I will decide not to fix immediately, even if it's more "important" than other things I'm working on. Then, when I come back and rapidly write a simple solution, the question of course is "Why didn't you do this a week ago if the solution was so simple?". The answer is that the answer wasn't simple at first. Understandings of a problem and solution often live and die many times over in a mental background thread, before they ever reach a keyboard. Sometimes, when under pressure, I am forced to ignore this fact and start writing the moment I reached the "Yeah, I think that would probably work, let's git 'er done!" phase. In almost every such case, it takes longer overall as I iterate through incomplete solutions and rewrites.
- majewsky 10y agoOne of the best parts about my job is that my boss understands that this is how good developers work.
- flukus 10y agoAgreed. I've seen "hard work" create more problems than it solves.