Hello!

Was wondering if anyone had similar problems and succeded to get by them. It is hard for me to feel motivated to sit down and start to code on my project, even though it is something i realy want to do, and something i need to complete to get into uni.

Once i pass the first ten - twenty minutes of coding i start to get more and more absorbed, and suddenly hours have passed without notice. I obviously love programming once i get started. Once i get start to get that total focus, there is nothing i would rather do than sit there and code. How come i keep avoiding starting? It makes no sense at all to me.

It happens. I had a deep motivation problem shortly after relasing Betty's Beer Bar (http://www.mrio-software.com/info.php?id=bbb) Alpha 2. There were tons of stuff to do, but none of them seemed "important"! I just stared at the monitor, opened a source file, closed it, opened another...

I didn't do anything special to end that state. I started doing side-tasks (reorganized the resource files, replaced the makefiles with Python scripts, etc) until I was in a mood for coding again. I guess it's easy to get saturated when you do something for long and reach a milestone.

That's one of the strong points of being an indie, I believe - you don't have to work in those days without inspiration.

If I have a bit of a mental block where I'm having trouble starting, what I try to do is break the task down into lots of small bits and handle just 1 small tiny task. Like you once I'm into the problem I tend to just keep going. So knocking away a few small tasks in 10-15 minutes often leads to a marathon session where I get several hours work done. Another thing I do is work on graphics or a related thing just to get the work flow going. Anything I can do to approach the thing I'm avoiding is usually enough to suck me in.

Originally posted by endasil
Hello!

Was wondering if anyone had similar problems and succeded to get by them. It is hard for me to feel motivated to sit down and start to code on my project, even though it is something i realy want to do, and something i need to complete to get into uni.

Once i pass the first ten - twenty minutes of coding i start to get more and more absorbed, and suddenly hours have passed without notice. I obviously love programming once i get started. Once i get start to get that total focus, there is nothing i would rather do than sit there and code. How come i keep avoiding starting? It makes no sense at all to me.

a well known problem and not just for programming.

I had the same problem with all of my uni studies in practically *every* subject. thing is, that when i scheduled to do it with a friend, i always did it. but when it was alone, i didn't.

then i sat down and thought, why when i shedule a work session with a friend I sit down ad do the work, and when i shedule to do something alone, I dont?

It's because when you feel obligated to do something and you don't have and excuse to avoid you do it.

problem solved.

Starting is always a huge challenge for me too. I experience the same phenomena as you. I've very cognizant of it however and when it start to happen I run though my mental checklist of things I do to get started.

Before sharing my checklist, I will share one of my pitfalls. When I’m avoiding starting on some code, I often come to dexterity to read and post. This ends up extending the starting process a good hour or so. This is a no-no. ;)

So say I need to add menus to my game. I have a general idea of what needs to be done, but I don't know specifically where to start. What I will do is just sit down and start reading my code, I don’t put any pressure on myself to do anything. Just read my code and put in a comment here and there where I will need to make changes to support the new feature. Once I know where my new feature will be interacting with the rest of the code, I’ll have a pretty good idea of what functions it needs to expose. So then I’ll go and write the .h file for the new class or classes I need to add.

Notice that at this point I’ve done very little real coding, all I’ve done is note a few points in my code where changes will be made, and then make a rough outline of what needs to be done by defining some .h files. At this point I’ve basically got a roadmap for what needs to get done, so it's easy to start filling in the .cpp files for my new classes and then go back to the areas where my new code needs to integrate and make a few changes here, and if statement there, and then I’m done.

Your mileage may vary, but that's how I get past my starters block, start with something with a very low mental barrier to entering, reading code. Continuing from there identifying the things that need to be done, once my mind knows exactly what needs to be done, it's very easy to get it to do it :)

Procrastinating over something unpleasant is one thing (for me a constant challenge), but procrastinating over something I consciously know I'll enjoy is fixable. When I recognize it's happening I try to live in the moment. By turning off the long-term planner in my head I can focus on the little details that I find interesting -- and it draws me right in. Living in the moment is often as easy as asking yourself what's the next step? Break down your objective into bite-sized pieces and chew on the first one. Allow yourself to enjoy it.

BTW, Dan, great tip. I would classify that as "disspelling one's apprehension." Maybe the problem feels too large and complicated, but by leaving a trail of cookie crumbs like that you disarm the analysis paralysis affecting you.

I basically do THE SAME THING EVERY DAY, and this avoids the procrastination part of sitting down to work. First, I put my son down for his nap, then I go down to the computer room, read a set list of web sites, then open my task list, and pick a small task (if there is one) to get started. Having a pattern that you follow ALL THE TIME is a very good way to prevent daily procrastination. This works for just about anything you do that is not forced on you. Make sure you sit down every day at the same time, and work the same amount of time, and it will eventually become easy to get started. Your mind will acclimate it self to the pattern, and eventually, it won't feel right to be sitting there and not follow the pattern.

I have also adapted the regularity that Mark is speaking about. One of the most powerful things to get me jumpstarted into the day is regular morning excercise. In the summer I bike to the office, in the winter I go to the gym. This makes me sweat for a rough 45-60min, and lifts the energy levels up. Then I assimilated two techniques from Steve P., the morning goalsetting (http://www.dexterity.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=682&highlight=goalsetting) and the daily plan (http://www.dexterity.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1029&perpage=15&highlight=actionoutline&pagenumber=1). I am unable to explain why the goalsetting works, but my data indicates a high correlation between efficiency and doing the goalsetting in the morning. The daily plan is perhaps easier to grasp. By doing all the decisions about what to do in the day before it is easy to hit the ground running in the morning. I need very seldom to think about starting, I just pick up the first thing on the list and go. Perhaps accepting that nothing can ever get finished helps to battle procrastination as well.

OH how I know procrastination well...it is my constant companion! :)

My latest project probably should have been out the door a month or so ago normally, but i've been struck by the "motivation" bug. It happens sometimes. So I just keep a small daily goals planner, and try to stick to it. I don't force anything (rarely works), and I just let the work flow when it flows. Best thing about being a small developer, no bosses to yell at you (and my publisher, Shrapnel, is quite hands-off and understanding about things like this, thankfully). :)

I usually, err, start by browsing the web (and these forums), which is probably very bad.

When I have convinced myself I really should be working, I just pick the easiest task I can find in my todo list. Usually it gets done quite fast, and other tasks follow easily...