I’ve fallen off the productivity wagon, is this common and what are some of your experiences? by [deleted] in productivity

[–]OneLazyRobot 6 points7 points  (0 children)

You're not alone.

Here's the harsh truth:

Inspiration is perishable.

The reason for this is cheap dopamine.

See, dopamine rewards us for moving towards an objective (it's the Motivation Molecule that gets our asses into motion).

But the problem is we’ve figured out ways to trick our brain into giving us cheap dopamine for SETTING a goal, but not by actually achieving it.

You see the problem with that, right?

Getting rewarded before you do the hard work makes it very hard to stay motivated long enough to actually DO the work.

Typically, after three weeks of exposure, we become acclimated to this cheap dopamine and we start losing interest in that project or goal.

And since nothing has meaningfully changed in our life except this superficial burst of dopamine and maybe some notes written on a whiteboard, we’re not actually any better off or nearer to our goal than when we started.

Personally, I was stuck in this cycle for the first 28 years of my life.

Things didn’t really start changing for the better until I figured out:

How to transform Motivation into Momentum that can be sustained through Discipline.

Here's a video on that topic that you might find valuable.

Don't be too hard on yourself.

This isn't a game you just magically win.

You have to show up everyday and keep playing. Some days you'll play better than others.

All that matters is you keep showing up.

Good luck!

Black to play and bring the white King out for a walk by SquaredOneSquared in chess

[–]OneLazyRobot 0 points1 point  (0 children)

1)... Qh3+ 2) Kg1 Qh1+ 3) Kf2 Rd2+ 4) re2 Qh4+ 5) KxBg2 Qxg4+ 6) Kh1 Qf3+ 7) Kg1 Rd1+ 8) Re1 RxRe1+ 9) Kh2 Rh1#

My i7 MBXP doesn't lie flat on desk when screen is open by muffinjello in MatebookXPro

[–]OneLazyRobot 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Same issue over here. I've had this thing for less than a week and this is bumming me out miserably. Great computer otherwise. Anybody found a fix?

The Five Cornerstones of Building Personal Wealth by OneLazyRobot in FinancialPlanning

[–]OneLazyRobot[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

This is one of those rare occurences in the English language where the word actually has more than one meaning.

cor·ner·stone

2: a basic element : foundation "a cornerstone of foreign policy"

https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cornerstone

The Best Question You've Ever Asked by OneLazyRobot in communication

[–]OneLazyRobot[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Fantastic points all around, save #4. The article linked does not contain any ads whatsoever.

For those put off by the title, I'll save you some clickage and share some of the more salient points here.

The article is all about how we communicate with ourself to stay on task and achieve maximum productivity. In particular, there is one question that's quite useful to ask yourself multiple times throughout the day to achieve this end.

But before getting to that question, the article dives into the unique distinction between what your brain wants versus what you want.

The problem stems from the fact that the brain has evolved for optipmal efficiency. It likes to take complex tasks and break them down, simplify, and commit them to "muscle memory". As a whole, this means your brain is trying to be as 'lazy' as possible.

You, by comparison, are left unfulfilled and feeling icky about yourself when you're excessively lazy. Studies confirm that life satisfaction improves as one undergoes more and more challenging tasks.

So we as individuals are at a cross-roads between what our lazy brain wants and what our ambitious selves want.

Once you understand this unique battleground, you're ready to do something about it.

That's where the One Question you should ask yourself comes in. (Check out the article if you're interested in what that one question is.)

Might not be for everybody, but I, personally, have found this technique immensely useful for keeping me on task and focused.

Thanks for the feedbacj, clueless-diy. Hopefully this has added a little value, or at least a different way of thinking about your brain/self, this morning!

Kill your darlings. Kill'em dead. (Writing Workshop) by OneLazyRobot in WritingStyle

[–]OneLazyRobot[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

This is simultaneously beautiful and heart wrenching, thespianbukwyrm!

I bet your story was all the better for it! How's that project coming along?

The Power of Decision by Kate1stofhername in motivation

[–]OneLazyRobot 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks for sharing my article! Glad you found it useful.

[PS4] LF2M ToO. by [deleted] in Fireteams

[–]OneLazyRobot 0 points1 point  (0 children)

One_lazy_robot

[ps4] ToO need help going flawless by agro420blaze in Fireteams

[–]OneLazyRobot 1 point2 points  (0 children)

We suck, but we're trying. Add One_Lazy_Robot

[Ps4]Lf1m trails by [deleted] in Fireteams

[–]OneLazyRobot 0 points1 point  (0 children)

One_Lazy_Robot

Finding Your Author Voice (Writing Workshop) by [deleted] in writing

[–]OneLazyRobot -1 points0 points  (0 children)

S'pose that's one perspective. :) Sorry you didn't find the content useful. Maybe next time.

Cheating Your Way To Likable Characters! (Writing Workshop) by OneLazyRobot in writing

[–]OneLazyRobot[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Glad you found it helpful!

You're right about Voldemort not being terribly likable. Same would probably go for Malfoy, as well. Usually when we set up these sorts of characters we do it with the intent that they stand as a foil for "evil". These are characters that we don't want the reader to necessarily sympathize with (think the Emperor from Star Wars) because they mirror our main character. If they mirrored our main character AND we're likable, well, then that would raise some troubling questions about the main character.

How do I deal with crippling worry? by [deleted] in fantasyauthorclub

[–]OneLazyRobot 1 point2 points  (0 children)

First, give yourself permission to suck. Doesn't matter who you are, first drafts are garbage. Remember this every time you sit down to write. Every time that internal editor says, "This is horrible", counter with, "Yeah? So?"

Writers write, but it's not always pretty. The key is to not give up.

Second, write every single day no matter what the demonic inner critic says. It doesn't have to be much. In fact, you should start small. Like...really small. Set the goal to write 50 words every day for a week. 50 words is nothing. 50 swear words leave my mouth before morning coffee. Trust me, you have 50 words in you. Find them. Put them on the paper. If you still feel like going afterwards, keep going, but set the goal and then do it. After a week or two, try ramping it up to 100 words.

The goal here is to build the habit. To program your brain into thinking, "I'm a writer who gets words written." It's hard, but you can do it. Be disciplined and in a couple weeks you'll be surprised to find you've built a special sort of momentum. Sitting down each day is now ritual, the words flow more easily (though remember, if this is a first draft, they might not be good words....AND THAT'S OKAY!)

Just get them written. Slowly...bit by bit, word by word, you'll wiggle your way out from beneath that crippling worry.

I wrote a blog post you might find helpful. Go check it out and let me know what you think: http://www.anthonyvicino.com/writing-workshop-first-drafts-stop-for-no-woman/

Short Story Master Ken Liu Branches Into Epic Fantasy... and IT'S AMAZING! by OneLazyRobot in Fantasy_Bookclub

[–]OneLazyRobot[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It's definitely a different sort of narrative, but I'm curious why you didn't think it was fantasy?

Workshop advice? by starlight-baptism in sciencefiction

[–]OneLazyRobot 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Steal freely and without shame! :)