For a while there I had a really good pace going as far as my development efforts were concerned. Each day I was aware of what needed to get done and what my work schedule was going to be and I was able to maintain that pace almost effortlessly. It was like everything was falling into place and I was "on".

Then some personal matters occurred that caused me to suspend my projects for a couple of weeks. I seem to be through the worst of it now but have completely lost my momentum. Whenever I sit at the computer my brain fogs over and I just can't get the energy or will together to get things done. I've always relied heavily on momentum to get me through challenges and now that my personal momentum has been sapped by outside influences I'm left with the feeling that I'm starting all the way back at square one. I haven't been away from my projects that long but for some reason it feels like years.

Any advice for recharging and getting the ball rolling again? How do you start back up again after being away form a project for a while?

Any ideas or advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

Originally posted by KNau
Any advice for recharging and getting the ball rolling again? How do you start back up again after being away form a project for a while?

The only way to build momentum again is to start moving again. Do a little bit each day, even if it's only a few minutes. Have something to show for each day. Use each day's forward progress to spur you on the next day.

It might take a few days, or even a few weeks, to get back to where you're as productive as you were before, but it will happen if you just don't give up.

Sometimes even work you love doing is...well...work. ;)

-David

Start playing your game - whatever was working. Keep a notebook by the computer where you start making a list of everything that needs doing. Include EVERYTHING, but try to break things down into manageable parts. If your game isn't quite playable, make a list of things that would get it to the playable stage.

Then just start going down the list. Start with things that you know will only take an hour or two. That will help you get familiar with your code again. Just get into the practice of ticking off checkmarks on the list, and adding new things to the list as you go.

Enumerating the things that need doing into a list really helps me out when I look at how much is done and how much is left to do, and I go, "Holy CRAP, how do I start?"

I have a 4 year old with many medical issues so I will sometimes have multi-week hospital stays with him (he can't be left alone). Sometimes we will head out the door without much warning.

Sit down at the computer a few weeks later... hmm, where did I leave off??

Maybe identify some easier tasks that need to be done and just focus on completing them. I've found that once I start moving forward again, things start to zoom along again.

I've gone through these kinds of phases many times. I've discovered that weekly or monthly momentum is built upon daily momentum, and that the way to build momentum each day starts first thing in the morning. So whenever I need to rebuild momentum, I set a goal for myself to get through the first three hours of work on my #1 project first thing in the morning. I make it a requirement that within 15 minutes of getting up in the morning, I have to be at my desk working. I don't eat breakfast or shower or exercise or check email or do anything else that might distract me. I simply get dressed and get right to work, and I don't come up for air until I've passed the 3-hour mark, no matter what.

I've discovered that if I have a productive morning, I'm extremely likely to have a productive day. And if I have a productive day, I'm likely to have a productive tomorrow too. And then that builds into weeks and months. It feels absolute great to have three full hours of work on the #1 project done before most people have even started their real work for the day. The day already feels like a win, and this builds confidence, which builds momentum. If you've worked the first three hours of the day straight, even if you take a break then, your momentum will still carry you forward into a productive day.

When I start this 3-hour period, I set my stopwatch going. When I hear the beep, it's the trigger to me that I'm working and can't stop until I see it hit 180 minutes. Going straight to the task as early as possible is critical too. It prevents me from having time to think about the difficulty of the task (which can lead to procrastination). Once I start the stopwatch, it's too late for those kinds of thoughts -- I'm committed to the full three hours.

On the contrary, if I take a lazy morning and try to build momentum later in the day, it's much, much harder. If the first three hours have been spent doing low-priority tasks, then my momentum is going in that direction. The best time to build fresh momentum for the day is immediately after waking up. Many writers use this approach -- just wake up and go straight to writing.

I'd like to say a big thanks to everyone for the number of "self-help" type posts that has been made throughout the forums. They are very helpful and has definately changed my lifestyle. I still gotta tweak and fix some things here and there to live a more productive lifestyle, but already I feel more energized each day.

Gettings more things done in the morning than in the army definately encourages me to do more things during the day. It's like a domino that falls on to each other domino that flips a energizer into a pink rabbit that keeps on going. lol :)

Absolutely! Thanks for the advice. Somehow I knew it was going to come down to "take it one day at a time" :)

I think Dexterity's advice is great. I got the book "How to get things done" and its suggestion is to think "what can i do in the next five minutes?" and then just do it.

Once you've done that, you might find that going through code leads to the next item on the checklist, and so on.

I find that sitting back and thinking "what do I do now? I don't know where I'm up to" is a very counter-productive way of acting, because it causes too much thought and too little action :)

Definately agreed with all here! The key (for me anyway) is to start doing simple things first, to get back into the "swing" of things.

I remember when I was completing my last project when my father became ill, and tore me away from it for quite awhile. It was quite tough to focus afterwards. Keeping a written list of tasks helps too; keeping it all in your head doesn't work if you're juggling an actual life along with your development. :)