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I found this paragraph so relatable: > Personally, I like to put a single song on repeat for hours and hours, days even. It helps me zone in. Why does this adm
by rocho 3y ago
I found this paragraph so relatable:
> Personally, I like to put a single song on repeat for hours and hours, days even. It helps me zone in. Why does this admittedly strange behavior help me? I'm not sure exactly, but I've known it to be helpful for more than half my life. I like to get up early before the family is awake, close Slack, put my phone in Do Not Disturb mode, and work. I even put a Post-it note on my monitor with the task I'm focusing on to help keep me on track. Sometimes I can accomplish more in that quiet hour and a half than I can in the rest of the day.
Except for the post-it note, I do those exact things. These seem to be the essential pre-requisites to being very productive (for me):
1. Set aside some time to work on something specific (with clear goals and intentions).
2. Block all interruptions (messages and calls of any kind and other distractions).
3. Focus and get in the zone. I find that music helps a lot here, and generally for me it's electric music or songs with very subtle lyrics (almost dream-like). If the lyrics are too noticeable, they become a distraction.
The above works both for my personal projects and work. I work remotely and sometimes there are so many interruptions during the work day that I simply abandon everything and go do something else (a walk, groceries, work out, etc.). Then I catch up in the evening or during the weekend, when interruptions are at a minimum or completely absent for hours on end. Almost always I'm more productive in a couple hours like this than for entire days.
Finally, while I liked the article a lot, I disagree with the premise that projects _must_ be finished. It's fine not to finish a project, it's not failure at all. On the other hand, yes, there is a certain feeling of accomplishment that comes with reaching a level of "completeness" of a project.
- mach1ne 3y agoInteresting that music works for you. I’ve noticed that besides just white noise, music significantly degrades my work results. I might produce similar amounts of content line-wise, but the solutions are of much lower quality when I listen to music. As a result, I only listen when work feels too painful and I’m okay with decreasing my output.
- rmuratov 3y agoFor me it is listening music without any words. I have one special track that enables "productivity mode" for me. If there any lyrics I can't concentrate and listen to words instead,
- mbwgh 3y ago> Finally, while I liked the article a lot, I disagree with the premise that projects _must_ be finished. To be fair, the author admits that including maintenance, a project is never really finished. Instead, he says that a project should be _published_. Preferrably, on GitHub :P
- benatkin 3y agoHmm who told him that was a good idea? I get talking proudly about it but unless there's a good reason it feels like a bad feedback loop. I am a little obsessed with songs at times and even I can't stand listen to the same song more than 10 times in a day unless I was trying to memorize it or something.
- aarondf 3y agoHuh? Nobody told me it was a good idea! I did it once and liked it and so I kept doing it. In that paragraph I'm describing how I work. The very next sentence is: > These things work for me, but you'll need to find what works for you. It's not prescriptive, just descriptive.
- benatkin 3y agoAh I see. I tend to ruminate a lot so that must be why the idea seems problematic to me. But you didn't say you ruminate or that you were interested in the lyrics of the songs and I'm not sure it would increase my rumination if I did it. I suppose I do it anyways just not to the same level and for different reasons. I get obsessed with a set of songs and listen to them a lot for a while.
- Zanfa 3y agoSometimes I put on a TV show I’ve already seen playing in the background to help me focus. Something easy like Scrubs or How I Met Your Mother, where you really don’t need effort to keep track. It can play in the background for the whole day and it somehow helps me get in the zone, but not always.