![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
Entry tags:
Structure!
1. JUMP OUT OF BED IN THE MORNING! No matter how you feel, go through the steps and simply doing them will make you awake & give you a rush of energy. It's all about attitude!
2. Force yourself to be at rest without technology, stop taking your iPad/laptop/portable device with you everywhere. Learn to appreciate things just as they are; savor the silence.
3. Environment can be critical. Again, go work somewhere without easy access to distractions, where you can't easily lie down or bum around.
4. KNOW THAT YOU ARE THE ONE IN CONTROL. Take the power back by saying "I'm greater than my impulses". Don't click that icon.
5. JUST GET STARTED. Delay gratification - get started for at least 20 minutes before you earn a reward. Sometimes you work into a flow and forgo the break! Think of the work as a pie broken into small chunks, tackle it gradually. Pomodoro
6. If you still can't get into it after these steps, then redirect that nervous energy somewhere productive - run it off, dance it away, clean house to oblivion. THEN TRY AGAIN. It'll be easier to work once you see that you can be productive
7. Praise yourself for a job well done! And uphold it, the delayed rewards of self-fulfillment is much more long lasting than any dopamine rush! YOU ARE ABOVE THIS.
...And if you fail, don't beat yourself up! You are already on the upswing by choosing to improve, JUST KEEP GOING. MOMENTUM IS EVERYTHING.
Well, there's really two problems here:
1. You lack the self-control to not click on the little icon and open up the internet when you should be working instead.
2. Once you're screwing around on the internet, it's easy to lose hours doing nothing really at all, and the only thing that helps you snap out of it is the panic you get when you realize it's 3am and you HAVE TO START NOW OR YOU WILL NOT GET DONE.
I've also struggled with these things. I found it easier to take on the issues separately; I have nearly conquered #1 but still sometimes have problems with #2. I can tell you for sure that dealing with #1 will get you 90% of the way there in terms of feeling like you're in control rather than the other way 'round.
Here's the thing: when you do brain-work, it's all about the momentum. If you rationalize starting out the day or the work session by checking email or looking at your RSS feed, you've started the momentum towards brainless web surfing and it's really hard to snap back over to other tasks. However I bet you'd be surprised how easy it is to NOT open that browser window once you've gotten some momentum going for your work. So step one is creating a habit of delayed gratification every time you sit at the computer to do work. In other words, make a rule that you absolutely, positively have to do 10 minutes of work before you can check email or open the internet. If you feel like you honestly can't--you're just so unmotivated to do the work that you can't even do 10 minutes of it before popping open your browser--then you need to go out running or get something to eat or anything, really, other than sit down at the computer and open up the browser. Sure, okay, going for a run is time-consuming, but honestly once you start screwing around on the internet we both know it's going to be a few hours time suck anyway, so you might as well run. (Note that you can do this IN ADDITION to using something like Leech Block to ban particular sites that you find impossible to leave once you start reading.) After you've fed/watered/exercised yourself, try again.
Step two (after mastering step 1) is learning how to cope with stress and other uncomfortable feelings around your work without attempting to distract yourself. Trying to find better ways to distract yourself (hey, I once asked this question too!) is ultimately a loser's game; you need to learn that being stressed or anxious WILL NOT KILL YOU and you can indeed just sit/work through it without a crutch. As a bonus, this skill will serve you so, so, so well in many aspects of life; using shiny distractions to avoid things we'd rather not deal with is a habit that tends to end badly in so many spheres both personal and professional.
In the end, learning the habits of delayed gratification and non-avoidance in the face of stress is like exercising; you're really crap at it now but every time you exercise those muscles you make yourself better at resisting time-sucks in the future.
posted by iminurmefi at 4:13 PM on October 20, 2011 [5 favorites]
2. Force yourself to be at rest without technology, stop taking your iPad/laptop/portable device with you everywhere. Learn to appreciate things just as they are; savor the silence.
3. Environment can be critical. Again, go work somewhere without easy access to distractions, where you can't easily lie down or bum around.
4. KNOW THAT YOU ARE THE ONE IN CONTROL. Take the power back by saying "I'm greater than my impulses". Don't click that icon.
5. JUST GET STARTED. Delay gratification - get started for at least 20 minutes before you earn a reward. Sometimes you work into a flow and forgo the break! Think of the work as a pie broken into small chunks, tackle it gradually. Pomodoro
6. If you still can't get into it after these steps, then redirect that nervous energy somewhere productive - run it off, dance it away, clean house to oblivion. THEN TRY AGAIN. It'll be easier to work once you see that you can be productive
7. Praise yourself for a job well done! And uphold it, the delayed rewards of self-fulfillment is much more long lasting than any dopamine rush! YOU ARE ABOVE THIS.
...And if you fail, don't beat yourself up! You are already on the upswing by choosing to improve, JUST KEEP GOING. MOMENTUM IS EVERYTHING.
Well, there's really two problems here:
1. You lack the self-control to not click on the little icon and open up the internet when you should be working instead.
2. Once you're screwing around on the internet, it's easy to lose hours doing nothing really at all, and the only thing that helps you snap out of it is the panic you get when you realize it's 3am and you HAVE TO START NOW OR YOU WILL NOT GET DONE.
I've also struggled with these things. I found it easier to take on the issues separately; I have nearly conquered #1 but still sometimes have problems with #2. I can tell you for sure that dealing with #1 will get you 90% of the way there in terms of feeling like you're in control rather than the other way 'round.
Here's the thing: when you do brain-work, it's all about the momentum. If you rationalize starting out the day or the work session by checking email or looking at your RSS feed, you've started the momentum towards brainless web surfing and it's really hard to snap back over to other tasks. However I bet you'd be surprised how easy it is to NOT open that browser window once you've gotten some momentum going for your work. So step one is creating a habit of delayed gratification every time you sit at the computer to do work. In other words, make a rule that you absolutely, positively have to do 10 minutes of work before you can check email or open the internet. If you feel like you honestly can't--you're just so unmotivated to do the work that you can't even do 10 minutes of it before popping open your browser--then you need to go out running or get something to eat or anything, really, other than sit down at the computer and open up the browser. Sure, okay, going for a run is time-consuming, but honestly once you start screwing around on the internet we both know it's going to be a few hours time suck anyway, so you might as well run. (Note that you can do this IN ADDITION to using something like Leech Block to ban particular sites that you find impossible to leave once you start reading.) After you've fed/watered/exercised yourself, try again.
Step two (after mastering step 1) is learning how to cope with stress and other uncomfortable feelings around your work without attempting to distract yourself. Trying to find better ways to distract yourself (hey, I once asked this question too!) is ultimately a loser's game; you need to learn that being stressed or anxious WILL NOT KILL YOU and you can indeed just sit/work through it without a crutch. As a bonus, this skill will serve you so, so, so well in many aspects of life; using shiny distractions to avoid things we'd rather not deal with is a habit that tends to end badly in so many spheres both personal and professional.
In the end, learning the habits of delayed gratification and non-avoidance in the face of stress is like exercising; you're really crap at it now but every time you exercise those muscles you make yourself better at resisting time-sucks in the future.
posted by iminurmefi at 4:13 PM on October 20, 2011 [5 favorites]
Make plans with other people that don't involve computers. Movies, museum, whatever. The more social I am, the less I (mis)use the internet.
Keep your environment clean. When I'm overwhelmed by the amount of housework, I distract myself with the internet.
I am terrible with this now that I work a 9-5 and don't have homework, but this worked for me in college/grad school. Blockers did not work; either I'd circumvent them or I'd just waste time on "allowed" sites. Addiction is about avoidance, and the brain will find other ways to avoid what you are avoiding. If you avoid your project in more productive ways (e.g., vacuuming, reading) you will build up the momentum and confidence needed to tackle your project.
posted by desjardins at 8:05 AM on October 21, 2011 [2 favorites]
In college, I partially addressed this problem by writing drafts of papers in longhand at the library using just my course books and printed PDFs of handouts or readings, etc. If I "needed" to look something up, I would write, "But before the Flemish Revolution in YEAR, most bakers were restricted by the assize..." and keep going.
Once I had a draft, I was allowed to go on the Internet and look up years, dates, specific names or quotes from the readings I hadn't printed out, whatever.
I often had to do without my laptop, lest I jump on the network JUST FOR A SECOND JUST TO SEE HOW IT FEELS.
On the other hand, I felt much much calmer at all times. And I felt that my papers got stronger, once I was engaging with the material without the distraction of my laptop. It was nice.
posted by Snarl Furillo at 5:22 PM on October 20, 2011
Oh, and in answer to your number (3) question, something that has worked really well for me is to build a habit of working for 25 minutes (one pomodoro) first thing in the morning. I shower, I make a cup of coffee, I sit down on my beanbag, open my laptop, turn on Gregorian chant background music, do NOT check email, click "start" on this timer and work. When the timer stops, I can have breakfast, check my email, and go to university. Or I can keep working. Surprisingly I often choose to keep working. But there's no pressure.
The best thing is that the whole rest of the day I feel amazing, because I started by being productive, and I've got one thing done, no matter what else happens. And then because I feel less stressed by my work, I find it easier to go back to it later in the day. Even if you are terrified by how hard the thing you are working on right now is, you can spend 25 minutes on it. And then you see it wasn't so hard after all. Or it was, but you survived anyway (and made progress!)
I did this EVERY DAY (including weekends) for four months at the start of this year, and it was the most productive I have ever been. Now I don't do weekends, but it still sets a nice tone for the day and I'm still getting more long-term projects finished than ever before.
posted by lollusc at 6:21 PM on October 20, 2011 [23 favorites]
posted by unannihilated at 7:28 PM on October 20, 2011 [1 favorite]
I was in college way before the internet. Before personal computers, actually. And I still stayed up till 3:00 a.m to do papers. Sometimes on speed (Black Beauties, actually, diet pills). Before that, in high school, I just delayed and stayed up all night to write papers. Still got an A.
So I propose to you that your problem is not the internet. The internet is just a way of procrastinating. Another delaying tool, if you will. And you are worrying a lot about this. And yes, it gives you a dopamine reaction. It calms you down. Otherwise you wouldn't be here.
But you are not stupid. You are smart, and you can figure out how to shut off the internet and get your work done without someone telling you how to do it.
posted by Marie Mon Dieu at 6:16 PM on October 20, 2011 [1 favorite]
I could easily have written this question when I was at university. I think it's worth mentioning that several years later I finally got treatment for my depression. I still have a little bit of an internet problem, but it's nothing like as bad. I really wish I had had the self-insight to get this sorted out sooner.
The chances are that that isn't your problem; I have no other reason to think it might be. In general, however, I think it would be a good idea to think about the root causes of your behaviour. It sounds like you need to integrate a sense of relaxation and reward into your life more, so that you don't try to get your 'fix' of it from internet use. I agree with desjardins about making sure that your environment is pleasant and about spending time with people. You might think about meditation as a way to increase your tolerance for anxiety and discomfort. If there's something that's obviously making your day-to-day life worse, do something about it. And if the problem is simply that every day feels like a struggle, one you'd rather forget, then for god's sake do something about it. Believe me, you don't get extra points for struggling on without fixing the obvious problems in your life.
One additional thing I'd recommend is doing your work in a really nice cafe, without internet access: somewhere where you feel relaxed and can drink coffee and eat snacks. This always seemed like a waste of money to me when I was at university, but when compared to the cost of my education it would have been negligible.
posted by Acheman at 9:10 AM on October 21, 2011 [1 favorite]