long_warmup

"stop playing mahjong, chess and read HN at work. Just stop completely, and never do it again."

This is so simple and yet exactly what should happen.

Power of habits hmm... Sounds like something easy to try, thanks for advice!

Hmm good point... but in the same time I don't have other option at the moment, with small kids everything seems challenging... (I actually contemplate to start at 5am and move my evening activities entirely to take place in the morning...)

But that definitely is good point and I'll need to think about it. I often wake up at 5am so at 6 I'm already 1 hour on my legs, already had shower and some walk on "fresh" air with my cup of coffee picked up on the way. So I don't feel sleepy or tired at that point, just not concentrated and not in the flow.

I used to rewriting down TODO list every day (like using pen and paper) and then looking through it every day (first thing in the morning though). At the time I had quite a few tasks that was long-term and also not fully under my control (i.e. I had to wait for somebody's input, and that somebody was not very cooperative). I figured this list helps me put pressure on myself but in the same time demotivates me a bit due to those long-term tasks..

This article is indeed relevant, thanks for sharing!

Great advice! Especially with taking mental note about need for break, I will take that advice!

My main problem is to get into the flow, once I'm there I'm able to maintain it.

I have days where the flow is so great that I sit whole day with code and be productive until the very end of my work day. I love what I do and those days power me up in such way that I just leave my desk and I'm so much easier to live with at home... That's what I want every day :)

I'm python developer, worked in a startup before doing all kind of technical stuff from product development, through infrastructure to daily development routine. I work remotely (however I rent a co-working desk for simple reason to have clear division between home time and work time), I'm based in London. Well, sport is sort of my Achilles heel - another thing I constantly fail to improve... Old schedule resulted in literally no time for my family, to the point my wife was thinking about divorcing me.

Thank you everyone for your responses!

I was thinking about rationalizing this , and also about effect of my work that matters rather than hours sited at my desk, and also that human beings are not machines.

My goal was to park all non-work time and spend it with family, playing chess to get into the flow feels like non-work time...

Maybe what I wrote feels like exaggerating but it comes from my other thoughts I had about life. Mainly that if I ever want to start something on my own and in the same time not to make my wife to divorce me is to become more efficient with time I spend at work. When I feel I waste time this makes me frustrated and some of that frustration leaks to my home-time... in a way that sometimes I have a feeling that time not invested is time wasted. I feel like this especially on bad days where I don't feel like I have done enough.

I know the answer is simply "don't waste time", it feels awkward but it's like addiction and I don't have good idea how to fight it.

Any side effects?