
Ask HN: Why is producing so hard? - produceconsume
I have been trying to write a blog post, create a side project or involve in some open source projects since the beginning of the new year but it&#x27;s not materializing.<p>Most of the time I end up consuming - reading an article on HN or just installing the open source project on my laptop or watching a youtube video. Since consuming is so easy, it is very difficult to break the habits from consuming to producing.<p>I want to know how others manage to produce so much outside of their 40 hours job on a consistent basis. What is the recipe to write the first blog post or hack a side project ?<p>Please share you thoughts and hacks.
======
kodz4
Turn off the internet.

I usually start out by creating an offline reference material dump (offline
docs - zeal, offline stackoverflow - kiwix, ebooks, pdfs etc) so I have no
great excuse to get online. Then I setup a schedule in my router to block all
internet traffic for N hours.

For me getting work done also depends on the environment I am in. If its a
problem that I am making progress with, then I can sit alone for hours and
work on it. But if its not going well, I need to be around others who are all
looking busy and productive :) That has some weird effect on me to stay
focused.

------
CyberFonic
I think the recent link on HN
([https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2018/mar/04/has-
dopam...](https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2018/mar/04/has-dopamine-got-
us-hooked-on-tech-facebook-apps-addiction)) gives us a clue. Consuming gives
us instant gratification in the form of a dopamine hit. Whilst producing
unreliably gives us a hit only once we complete a significant chunk.

I have been aware of this dynamic for a long time and by recognising that we
develop an addiction to dopamine we can take the sorts of steps that are
applied to weaning off any addiction. There are numerous articles on the
interwebs on different processes. You might need to experiment to find the one
that works well for you.

The other thing that I do is to "chunk it down", i.e. pick one small,
manageable piece of a task. One that takes me no more than 90 minutes and do
that. Once completed I do an affirmation and take some time out. Then tackle
another chunk.

If you have trouble concentrating for 60-90 minutes then I would suggest
embodying some of the strategies in "Deep Work" by Cal Newport.

I find that making a short (3-5 item) ToDo list each evening for the next day
helps too.

Finally, it is best to recognise that there are many interlocking pieces to
making these changes, and it takes time. And don't beat yourself up when you
drop the ball. Take some time out and muck in again.

I no longer have any social media apps on my phone or notebook, only on the
desktop and check them at most once a day, sometimes not for several days. I
leave my phone on silent and only return emails once or twice a day. But HN --
that is the one "luxury" that I browse for a few minutes between chunks.

------
justaaron
Play around. Make things. Try things. Sit down with a rough plan and a few
hours and see what ends up slowing you down, then surpass it.

