How Do You Maintain Your Work Focus?

chowsapal asks: "I've recently switched from another line of work into computer programming, where I work as a contractor. I'm making more money than I need, and more than I'm used to even working 20 or 25 hours a week. I'd like to work more, and rake in even more money, but sometimes it's hard to stay focused for more than 5 or 6 hours at a time. What do other programmers do to motivate themselves? Do you work a specific set of hours? In a specific location? Are there types of breaks that you find really increase productivity? Does diet and/or coffee consumption make or break the deal? Do you end up working late at night for the quiet? I realize that on some level you just need to suck it up and put in the time, or stop worrying about it and enjoy your time off. However, the question stands: How do you work best outside an office environment?"

Comments

Two Options

[acvh]

One - Provigil.

Two - Trust your feelings, Luke. If you're already "making more" than you need, and you can't get motivated to make more, then don't. Go out and have some fun.

Priorities?

[sharkey]

If you are making more than you need, and more than you are used to in a "shorter than normal" work week, perhaps you should go to the pool or something. It sounds like you are working to get money so you can HAVE money, not so that you can attain any other goal in life but to get more money.

Perhaps your motivation problem is that you seem to have no goals outside of the numbers on your bank accounts.

Add a bit of Diversity

[SubliminalVortex]

I'm almost convinced that programmers are afflicted with 'ADD' as a side effect. It's very easy to get bored with a programming task (especially one that is boilerplate) so we go off on a tangent trying to automate the process of writing boilerplate code.

I find that when spending too much time looking at the same code, it starts becoming 'vague' and I feel as if I'm in a fugue. It's akin to the same thing as writing a story or some e-mail and thinking that you've misspelled the words 'it' or 'and'. It may very well be correct, but it looks foreign and you try to fix something that isn't broken. At that point, it's time for a mental break.

I actually tend to take at least three breaks a day for about five to ten minutes each. The first two, I read Slashdot; usually around 10:00am and the other right before lunchtime. I don't eat out often, but I do pick up lunch and then around 4:00pm, I check out the latest 'IT' curiosity posted on The Daily WTF http://www.thedailywtf.com/. I also check Slashdot again right before I leave so I don't miss some of the few gems posted here.

A lot of IT shops have their eye on Web browsing, but they usually won't pay mind to it unless you're not producing or you have a tendency to frequent sites that raise an eyebrow or two (hint: pr0n sites tend to fall in that category). I do like to visit sites geared towards developers, such as GotDotNet http://www.gotdotnet.com/, CodeProject http://www.codeproject.com/, CodeGuru http://www.codeguru.com/ and the latest "up and coming" Krugle http://www.krugle.com/ code search engine. Sometimes visiting those sites will give a tidbit or two that is useful; you may run across some code or solution to a problem that interests you. Also, you may end up learning something that you'll run into in the future. (Coders tend to re-invent the wheel if they don't have the code handy; however, if the code is there, they tend to add spinning rims to it.)

Adding a bit of diversity to the routine helps keep you on the edge and refreshed to approach a problem in a new light.

Here's what works for me

[hobuddy]

My work environment is very flexible, so I'm pretty much free to structure my time, as long as I get the work done. But let's face it: a larger slice of programming than we'd like is friggin' boring drudge work. Here's the most effective strategy I've found for concentrating on work:

- Get enough sleep, and get up early (heresy for a geek, I know).

- Have some breakfast and then *dive right into work while you're still fresh*. Don't squander these precious hours on Slashdot and Reddit! Do 3-4 hours of work until your morning high is gone.

- Then stop and do some very intensive physical exercise for 45-75 minutes. By "very intensive", I'm talking about the frothin-at-the-mouth, panting, totally-drenched-in-sweat kind of stuff. My chosen exercise is to split firewood with a maul, at the fastest pace my body can handle.

- After going all out on the exercise, take a shower.

- Eat lunch and enjoy a bit of leisure (read Slashdot or whatever). At this point, the post-morning-high crash is long gone, but it should have been replaced by a feeling of relaxation (because of exercise -> shower -> lunch), but still with adequate energy because the exercise revved your body up. I find that if I don't do the (very intensive) exercise, I tend to be very sleepy from the time the morning high wears off until the end of the work day.

- Do another 3-4 hours of work. You'll probably find it easier to concentrate on boring work during this period of the day, since you'll be mellowed by the exercise -> shower -> meal.

- If 6-8 hours is enough, you're now done for the day. However, I sometimes find the very most boring work most tolerable between 8 p.m. and 10 p.m., when my body is winding down toward sleep. Just don't do anything so absorbing or intellectually taxing that it wakes you back up, or you'll be up really late.

I know these suggestions are not realistic for most people, but for those who work from home, they're feasible. That mid-day exercise provides a huge boost to my ability to concentrate.

Are you sure you're making more than you need?

[Pyromage]

If it weren't for all the other people here saying 'enjoy the time off' I wouldn't say this, but: *no*, you're *not* making more than you need!

Ok, maybe you are. But I doubt it. First, a contracting career is not secure. That's why they pay you a premium: because you constantly take the risk of being fired without another gig lined up.

Secondly, how much are you saving? Emergency funds? Retirement nest egg? Do you have health insurance, 401/k, etc? Contractors usually don't.

Just because you're more than covering all your bills now doesn't mean you're making enough. If you don't have enough cash or readily liquidatable assets to cover 6 months expenses, I wouldn't be 'not worried', I'd be absolutely panicking.

My serious advice: see a financial planner, figure out how much you should be saving. Get a second contracting job to fill the other 20 hours of a full work week. You should be able to more easily focus when you have totally different projects.

And as far as motivation goes, shipping quality products to customers who appreciate it is more than enough motivation. I love seeing a hearing a customer tell me he's happy with the product, even though it cost him around $300k.