Via the indispensible LifeHacker comes a post from a guy who has managed to completely master his sleep patterns and free up more productive time in his day to day life:

“From 4-6 AM, I simply get a ton of things done. In fact, I’d argue that I get more done from 4-6 AM than I do from 8-Noon. No matter what I decide to do, it’s uninterrupted simply because no one else is awake and functioning. It’s purely a time for knocking out tasks (work or home related), reading, project work, planning, etc. It’s great.

My life was not always this way, I used to be the guy that stayed up late and woke up with barely enough time to shower before work. So, how did I change that? It’s actually pretty simple, I installed a regimen that I have now followed for years. On average, I believe that I have given myself an extra 5 hours per week or (do the math) an extra 10.8 days per year to get stuff done.”

Discipline appears to be the key. (Damn it, why is it always discipline, my Achilles heel?) I may experiment with this system myself - the idea of a short kip around lunchtime certainly has appeal, as does the notion of being able to bound out of bed in the mornings with the will (and ability) to get some work done …

I’m not expecting instant results, however. I’ve also got a whole lot of deadlines coming to a peak over the next few weeks (some of which involve actually getting paid for my work), I’m learning the Reviews Ed. ropes for Interzone, and I have to start reading up for the SF Foundation Masterclass next month … which is a roundabout way of saying that blogging may be a little skinny here at VCTB for a little while. Then again, I’ve said that before, and not really cut back much at all, so who knows! But I thought it only polite to mention it.

Hope you’re all getting done the things that you need doing!

So, here is a picture of the murky underside of Velcro City’s South Parade Pier*, taken on a surprisingly sunny day about a fortnight ago. Not the most recent of photos, but time, weather and resources have not permitted any shutterbug adventures of late.

I like all the lines and angles, the rust - it’s like a poem of engineering, a mumbled story about the decay of Victorian values entangled with the detritus of what came after. Something like that.

[* Yes, the one that caught fire during the filming of 'Tommy'.] Continue reading “Friday Photo Blogging: Beneath the pier, the rust”

Now, don’t misunderstand me, I love a bit of time off work. Hell, I’d like a whole lot more of it. But free time brings its own dilemmas, as illustrated below:

(This cartoon ©Shannon Wheeler; click through on image for original location.)

Continue reading “Productivity versus procrastination”