Sep 25
How to Work All Day
I’m trying a variant of the 30/30 Work Cycle for days when I work by myself, without the distractions of meetings and random interruptions. So far, it seems to work fairly well, especially when motivation is a bit low and the work takes a lot of concentration.
My variant goes like this:
- Set a timer (on iPhone, in my case) for 25 minutes.
- Work on something hard until the timer goes off.
- Take a minute to jot down notes on whatever thought you were in the middle of.
- Stand up out of your seat, walk around, stretch, jump, whatever. Just get the blood flowing and the heart rate up.
- Repeat from 1, choosing a very different task to the previous one.
I have noticed a few nice benefits to working like this.
First, getting up and moving my body about twice per hour seems to help a lot with the lethargy that usually comes from working at a desk all day.
Second, the context shifts keep everything feeling fresh. Motivation is a lot easier when I know I only have to concentrate on this task for 25 minutes, especially for tasks I’ve been avoiding. And, it’s amazing what can be achieved in only 25 minutes.
Third, it stops the opposite problem, where I get too engrossed in a task that is easy and/or fun, but ultimately not very important.
Fourth, when I have something I want to do, and something I know I should do, I don’t have to choose. I can do both! (Pro tip: always do the “should” task in the first 25-minute session.)
I’ve found that with this method, I can work for many hours (my record so far is 12!), without falling into lethargy or fatigue, with 50 out of every 60 minutes spent in concentrated, productive work.
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