Howdy, Stranger!

It looks like you're new here. If you want to get involved, click one of these buttons!


How do you code or work best?
New on LowEndTalk? Please Register and read our Community Rules.

All new Registrations are manually reviewed and approved, so a short delay after registration may occur before your account becomes active.

How do you code or work best?

VPNshVPNsh Member, Host Rep
edited May 2012 in General

Hi guys :)

Basically, I'm usually an absolute slacker and probably spend more of my time in college lessons browsing LET and ordering from Amazon than actually doing my work. As you can probably imagine, this can lead to me falling further behind than I'd want to be :O.

Although I've spent the last 12 hours constantly working, only taking around 30 mins of breaks total (I know, unhealthy..). But basically, this is the first time I've ever tried to work in the room that I am in, I've had minimal distractions, and I'm sat on an extremely uncomfortable sofa. I've been turning off the Internet connection when the work I've needed to do hasn't required the internet, and somehow I've managed to stick at my work for the past 12 hours without getting distracted.. well, until now of course :P.

Just wondering how you guys work best, and how you avoid getting sidetracked by LET, Amazon, games, porn, eBay, Twitter, porn, Facebook, StumbleUpon, porn etc.?

I'm rather intrigued :D

«1

Comments

  • SpencerSpencer Member

    Sounds like you have the case of ADD! But im not doctor.

  • AsadAsad Member
    edited May 2012

    Usually middle of the night when everyone is asleep and there's no distractions. Can't really concentrate and stay focused unless there's a deadline :P Putting on headphones and playing loud music helps too :)

  • vldvld Member

    I do not try to fight laziness. If I'm trying to work and I feel lazy, well, no work.

  • cedriccedric Member

    @Francisco puts on episodes of Maury :P. I should download a couple seasons for some background noise

  • FranciscoFrancisco Top Host, Host Rep, Veteran

    @cedric said: @Francisco puts on episodes of Maury :P. I should download a couple seasons for some background noise

    It's so true :(

    Francisco

  • vrillusionsvrillusions Member
    edited May 2012

    At work I tend to work best in the afternoon. Mornings (ie before noon) I'm either dealing with emergencies (well, things people THINK are emergencies but really aren't). After lunch is usually when people bug me about stuff or when those "emergencies" from the morning are actually done. Then from like 3:00ish on the number of distractions go down and I can actually get stuff done. Usually most productive after 5 simply because people are leaving then so I can get stuff done. By far distractions are the worse thing, especially when people walk up and are like "hey, can you do [something not all that pressing or important but I'm going to hover here till you do it]" and expect me to drop everything to do it. Have gotten better at saying I'm in the middle of something and ask if it can wait. Even better if I'm doing something directly for my supervisor then they usually back off. I am a sysadmin at work.

    At home, although I don't have the distractions I'm still a night person. When I first get home if anything I want to play video games or something, usually want to take a nap. I chose the nap option tonight and why I'm still up at 2:00 AM when I get up at 7:30. Most nights I have to pull myself away from the computer and then it takes a while to get to sleep because I'll be thinking of stuff I want to do.

    I guess that first paragraph was a little rantish but to answer the question: locked up in a room where no one can bug me. This happens naturally at home (live by myself) but can be a challenge at work.

    Also for night owls like me I highly recommend f.lux. It adjusts the color of your display to be more like the room lighting. Definately less strain on eyes. Clients for all the major OSs out there. Obviously doesn't work well if you are photo editing or something but you can disable it for an hour or just close it if needed.

  • KuJoeKuJoe Member, Host Rep

    @vrillusions said: Also for night owls like me I highly recommend f.lux.

    Giving it a try. Paired with KMFDM this should make a productive night for me coding-wise. :)

  • jcalebjcaleb Member

    when i was a freelancer working at home, i only work when people at home are already sleeping.

    you should motivate yourself first and find a good reason why you want to finish what you are doing. But it's best when you like what you are doing. Don't get projects that you dont want.

  • AdamAdam Member

    Break everything down into miniature goals... If I work 2hrs, then I get a beer :)

  • I usually turn every distraction (e.g. music) off so i can completly concentrate on my code. Also when theres a problem i gotta solve i usually walk in circles in my room or take a shower.

  • VPNshVPNsh Member, Host Rep

    Interesting stuff guys.

    @vrillusions way ahead of ya on f.lux, been using that bad boy for maybe 2 years now.

  • letboxletbox Member, Patron Provider

    Lol! why said porn 3 times -:P

    Thanked by 1Jeffrey
  • I code best when stressed.

  • gbshousegbshouse Member, Host Rep

    In my day work around 8-8,5 hours of coding from 0900 to 1700-1730, in the evening another 4-5 till 0300-0200. By the way how to explain to 3 years old girl what server is? :D

  • ElliotJElliotJ Member

    I usually do anything major late at night.

    That way it's nice and quiet, with minimal distraction.
    Music helps me concentrate, but no DnB/Dubstep; ambient music only.

    @Adam said: Break everything down into miniature goals

    This. If you set yourself small goals, you'll have a better sense of achievement when you're working on something.
    That achievement will motivate you more :)

  • AlexBarakovAlexBarakov Patron Provider, Veteran

    I do the most work after 11 PM. Most likely because of my timezone as well - my clients are mainly based in the US, so it is around morning/lunch at their timezone. Also, it gets pretty quiet, I am located near a forest - around 10-15 meters from my window, so if the weather is good, the wind from there is pretty refreshing and I get pretty productive. Usually listen to music or leave something else running (like some TV eps).

  • jarjar Patron Provider, Top Host, Veteran
    edited May 2012

    I embrace the distractions. The worst thing I can do is sit down and focus on my work. I over think everything, I stress myself out over simple questions. If I'm staring a my computer screen, I can spend 2 hours over thinking and obsessing over minor details. I mean it takes me 4 hours to pick a song for a 3 minute video. Halfway through an episode of Seinfeld I have all the answers. By then it's last minute, I'm stressed, and I do the absolute best job I'm capable of. I guess it's just about knowing how to trick yourself into doing the best work you can do. At least for me ;)

  • marrcomarrco Member

    @vrillusions said: Also for night owls like me I highly recommend f.lux. It adjusts the color of your display to be more like the room lighting

    ditto

  • inverseinverse Member
    edited May 2012

    Maybe you should try the Pomodora Technique . It's worked for a lot of my friends, although I've not tried it personally. I do attempt to focus on a set target for a given time frame.

  • joepie91joepie91 Member, Patron Provider

    @jarland said: I embrace the distractions. The worst thing I can do is sit down and focus on my work. I over think everything, I stress myself out over simple questions. If I'm staring a my computer screen, I can spend 2 hours over thinking and obsessing over minor details. I mean it takes me 4 hours to pick a song for a 3 minute video. Halfway through an episode of Seinfeld I have all the answers. By then it's last minute, I'm stressed, and I do the absolute best job I'm capable of. I guess it's just about knowing how to trick yourself into doing the best work you can do. At least for me ;)

    I actually used to do much the same... I've since then changed around things a bit to trick myself in a similar way, by thinking over things for days or even weeks while doing other stuff, and then when I get to work, setting an incredibly tight deadline (usually ~1 hour or in extreme cases a night), to get it done. It gets a lot of work done :)

  • Blasting any sort of electronic music or heavy metal normally makes me work best.

  • edited May 2012

    You need to set a plan, and do tunnel vision until that project/idea is accomplished. How I code and how I live life ;) Distractions will eat your life away. Porn is horrible, stay far away from that too.

  • wrhotonwrhoton Member

    Adderall! With adderall I code 10x faster and more efficiently!

  • AsadAsad Member

    @wrhoton I bet you do!

  • I simply listen to radio from the USA, and force myself to take a 2 hour break midday. I tend to work 12-16 hours on an average day.

  • WilliamWilliam Member

    In the night.

    I work 9-17 but usualy it is 9,30-18 - I usualy do not take breaks for lunch but i smoke 2-5 cigarettes per day as "break" while calling customers by mobile outside the office.

    Then when i go home i usualy either work further or sleep some hours until ca. 04:00 wake up and then work further until i go to the office :)

  • I find that once I'm in the mood I can work for hours on end. A bit of relaxing music can do wonders.

    Thanked by 1yomero
  • @wrhoton said: Adderall! With adderall I code 10x faster and more efficiently!

    @William said: In the night.

    For me, these are both completely true. I'm prescribed Adderall for my ADD, and I've been known to take it a bit differently from the scrips if I want to wipe out some coding.

    I usually will pull an all-nighter (or at least most-nighter, though the Adderall usually makes it all): take some Adderall at around 10-11pm, about an hour later (so usually ~midnight) it'll be in full force and I'll sit down and code until about 6 or 7am. (With a couple short breaks in there to rest my mind). The main reason I code at night is because my parents (eww)/siblings (even more eww) will be asleep, there will be very little noise from the lot outside my apartment, apartments pool, etc. And I can't code for more than 60-90 minutes without the Adderall so that's that.

  • nabonabo Member
    edited May 2012

    Well, some decades ago people simply sticked to their work because it had to be done. Today we're a generation of weenies. If we have a headache we take aspirin instead of drinking enough water and doing sport. If we can't overcome one's weaker self we take medicine. What a waste...

Sign In or Register to comment.