I seem to have gotten a lot better lately at getting things done, so here’s my attempt at breaking it down.
Consistency effects from being responsible for other people/groups: +8, 6 months or so. I am responsible for membership admittance of a private group on Habitica (see below), for reminding a friend to take their meds, and for helping other friends debug their productivity. The overall effect is that a) I get practice at productivity techniques, b) It primes me to be a productive person.
Habitica (formerly known as HabitRPG): +4, on and off for 3 years. I’m a member of an active party in this gamification of productivity, which means that if I don’t do my dailies, my teammates take damage. Being responsible for membership of a private group means I have to log on regularly anyway, so I might as well use the system. And the combination of daily and to-do lists is good enough for me to track all my tasks and make sure I stay on track (one of my daily tasks is to do at least 1 to-do item).
Working from home: +3, 10 months. This might come across as counterintuitive, but when I started working from home I floundered around for the first few months, and then money became an issue and I got better at consistently putting in the work. I’m still not perfect (witness me here instead of working), but I feel like I’ve improved my ability to get things done in less structured environments and with little to no oversight.
Pomodoros: 0, on and off for the last 3 years. I still find them useful occasionally when I’m having major issues getting started on something, but the enforced on/off pattern drives me bonkers. If I’m not getting into the task, 25 minutes on feels like an eternity and 5 minutes off feels much too short of a break. If I am getting into the task, I’ll just ignore it altogether. Giving them a zero because I feel like the pros and cons cancel out.
Asking people to tell me to work: +1. Another way to convince myself to get started when I just don’t wanna, by utilizing peer pressure.
I seem to have gotten a lot better lately at getting things done, so here’s my attempt at breaking it down.
Consistency effects from being responsible for other people/groups: +8, 6 months or so. I am responsible for membership admittance of a private group on Habitica (see below), for reminding a friend to take their meds, and for helping other friends debug their productivity. The overall effect is that a) I get practice at productivity techniques, b) It primes me to be a productive person.
Habitica (formerly known as HabitRPG): +4, on and off for 3 years. I’m a member of an active party in this gamification of productivity, which means that if I don’t do my dailies, my teammates take damage. Being responsible for membership of a private group means I have to log on regularly anyway, so I might as well use the system. And the combination of daily and to-do lists is good enough for me to track all my tasks and make sure I stay on track (one of my daily tasks is to do at least 1 to-do item).
Working from home: +3, 10 months. This might come across as counterintuitive, but when I started working from home I floundered around for the first few months, and then money became an issue and I got better at consistently putting in the work. I’m still not perfect (witness me here instead of working), but I feel like I’ve improved my ability to get things done in less structured environments and with little to no oversight.
Pomodoros: 0, on and off for the last 3 years. I still find them useful occasionally when I’m having major issues getting started on something, but the enforced on/off pattern drives me bonkers. If I’m not getting into the task, 25 minutes on feels like an eternity and 5 minutes off feels much too short of a break. If I am getting into the task, I’ll just ignore it altogether. Giving them a zero because I feel like the pros and cons cancel out.
Asking people to tell me to work: +1. Another way to convince myself to get started when I just don’t wanna, by utilizing peer pressure.