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Questions that might illuminate if there's a problem - When's the last time you went for a walk? When's the last time you were in nature for a while? When's

Questions that might illuminate if there's a problem - When's the last time you went for a walk? When's the last time you were in nature for a while? When's the last time you spent a day absolutely, completely relaxing? How's your diet? How's your sleep? How's your sleep schedule? When's the last time you had a vacation? How much inspirational media have you been through in the last week - books, movies, audio, whatever. When's the last time you hung out around or talked on the phone with someone really inspirational? Beyond that - changing environment can bring you out of a funk, bringing a laptop to a cafe with no internet can be a great option if you can do some work offline.

Alex3917 16y ago
"Beyond that - changing environment can bring you out of a funk, bringing a laptop to a cafe with no internet can be a great option if you can do some work offline." Even the best entrepreneurs have a really hard time focusing because they have so many different kinds of tasks that they can never really get into a flow state. Trying to do work as an entrepreneur while having access to the Internet is like trying to study for finals in a crack house.
- DeusExMachina 16y ago
  You are right, internet is a huge time sink. On the opposite site sometimes I need to look for something and if in that moment I do not have a connection, I use it as an excuse to stop working and procrastinate.
  - robryan 16y ago
    Yeah, your defiantly going to need a lot of resources handy to work off-line and even then you probably hit something that you need to lookup online. I can see that given the right task though it would be beneficial, the slightly slower working pace by lack of resources could be made up by the concentration you get. It works for me studying for exams when I can have all the course content in front of me, even then though I end up finding something interesting that I want to look up in lecture notes or something that makes no sense so I need to search for a better explanation online.
- lukifer 16y ago
  I've always said that staying focused while doing web development is like staying thin while working in a candy store.
- mbutson 16y ago
  The last sentence of your comment is genius. True. True. True.
berntb 16y ago
Good list as answer to typical burnout syndrome. That cafe tip is a favorite. Some specific experiences from me and others: - Are there season differences? Consider SAD. - Check for infection. - Test for deficiencies (like iron, etc.) - Try meditation (there are non-religious variants).
- DeusExMachina 16y ago
  I was already thinking about meditation, since it help with focus that is what I'm lacking now. I will check also other things.
- DeusExMachina 16y ago
  I was already thinking about meditation, since it helps with focus that is what I'm lacking now. I will check also other things.
DeusExMachina 16y ago
This helps a lot. For lot of things (a walk, nature, relax, vacations) it was really long time ago. My diet is quite good, I think, but the sleep schedule needs a little fix. I lacked inspirational media in the recent period and I just talk with friends, but no one is really an authority in this field. For the environment I'm looking at the library, and the last time I visited it I managed to do something (but then I needed to look for something on the internet and I did not have a connection, so my mind switched to another mode: find an excuse to procrastinate it).
- lionhearted 16y ago
  Alright, it's going to be fairly easy to pull out of things then - bring some positive fundamentals into your life. Go for a walk for 15 minutes, go to some nature if you're in a rural area or a park or university campus if you're in a city and just sit there a while, or go sit by a river, or lake, or harbor. A vacation would help if you can get away, even for a couple days. Some people can handle screwy sleep schedules, some can't. Etc. Try to integrate one or two positive things the next day or two - you're obviously looking for a solution so you're geared up, just go take a walk before you sit down at your computer today or tomorrow. Short walk around the neighborhood will do, and you'll probably have some clear thoughts. Remember - when you're in a hole, fundamentals are almost always the way out. Walk, nature, sleep, diet, relax, environment - things like that. Good luck, I was there a while back and it sucks, but you'll pull out of it if you focus on fundamentals.

Alex3917 16y ago

"Beyond that - changing environment can bring you out of a funk, bringing a laptop to a cafe with no internet can be a great option if you can do some work offline." Even the best entrepreneurs have a really hard time focusing because they have so many different kinds of tasks that they can never really get into a flow state. Trying to do work as an entrepreneur while having access to the Internet is like trying to study for finals in a crack house.

DeusExMachina 16y ago
You are right, internet is a huge time sink. On the opposite site sometimes I need to look for something and if in that moment I do not have a connection, I use it as an excuse to stop working and procrastinate.
- robryan 16y ago
  Yeah, your defiantly going to need a lot of resources handy to work off-line and even then you probably hit something that you need to lookup online. I can see that given the right task though it would be beneficial, the slightly slower working pace by lack of resources could be made up by the concentration you get. It works for me studying for exams when I can have all the course content in front of me, even then though I end up finding something interesting that I want to look up in lecture notes or something that makes no sense so I need to search for a better explanation online.
lukifer 16y ago
I've always said that staying focused while doing web development is like staying thin while working in a candy store.
mbutson 16y ago
The last sentence of your comment is genius. True. True. True.

berntb 16y ago

Good list as answer to typical burnout syndrome. That cafe tip is a favorite. Some specific experiences from me and others: - Are there season differences? Consider SAD. - Check for infection. - Test for deficiencies (like iron, etc.) - Try meditation (there are non-religious variants).

DeusExMachina 16y ago
I was already thinking about meditation, since it help with focus that is what I'm lacking now. I will check also other things.
DeusExMachina 16y ago
I was already thinking about meditation, since it helps with focus that is what I'm lacking now. I will check also other things.

DeusExMachina 16y ago

This helps a lot. For lot of things (a walk, nature, relax, vacations) it was really long time ago. My diet is quite good, I think, but the sleep schedule needs a little fix. I lacked inspirational media in the recent period and I just talk with friends, but no one is really an authority in this field. For the environment I'm looking at the library, and the last time I visited it I managed to do something (but then I needed to look for something on the internet and I did not have a connection, so my mind switched to another mode: find an excuse to procrastinate it).

lionhearted 16y ago
Alright, it's going to be fairly easy to pull out of things then - bring some positive fundamentals into your life. Go for a walk for 15 minutes, go to some nature if you're in a rural area or a park or university campus if you're in a city and just sit there a while, or go sit by a river, or lake, or harbor. A vacation would help if you can get away, even for a couple days. Some people can handle screwy sleep schedules, some can't. Etc. Try to integrate one or two positive things the next day or two - you're obviously looking for a solution so you're geared up, just go take a walk before you sit down at your computer today or tomorrow. Short walk around the neighborhood will do, and you'll probably have some clear thoughts. Remember - when you're in a hole, fundamentals are almost always the way out. Walk, nature, sleep, diet, relax, environment - things like that. Good luck, I was there a while back and it sucks, but you'll pull out of it if you focus on fundamentals.