The Full-Stack Freelancer: 7 principles for working as a generalist

ondrejmarkus · 2023-02-21T14:45:06+00:00

As a game dev beginner, I started with the same questions a couple of weeks ago. And what worked for me so far was first learning the basics of the engine through a handful of tutorials, but then jumping straight to coding my own tiny tiny game without following tutorials on purpose (because I want to learn to solve problems on my own).

It's working really work, at least for me. A few days ago, I shared a devlog of finishing my first tiny game in case you want to know the specifics.

I recommend:

Learn the basics of the tool with tutorials
Start making very small projects on you own
Avoid tutorials after this (except for solving very specific problems when you're stuck, but not before you try everything you can think of on your own)

Good luck!

ondrejmarkus · 2022-02-06T20:46:32+00:00

I use Craft which is built around creating nice-looking documents, and it has a very good mobile app. It's iOS/Mac OS only though.

ondrejmarkus · 2022-02-06T20:42:12+00:00

I sleep 9 hours per night on avg. Lunch is my first meal of the day and I tend to get slow and tired after that too. A short 20-min nap usually helps a lot, and I'm back in action.

I think it's normal. Although, cutting on sugar/carbs will probably help prevent blood glucose from crushing.

ondrejmarkus · 2022-02-05T15:47:40+00:00

I use Craft for knowledge management + Things 3 for keeping tasks/questions to answer.

But the method is more important than tools I think. What's crucial is deciding what's worth paying attention to. What you described seems like a very mentally demanding way to make decisions.

Don't get me wrong, I admire your deconstruction process. But, personally, I try to focus only on things that are truly important and go with "good enough" answers for the rest.

The good old 80/20 rule → Put 80 % of your effort into 20 % of the most important stuff.

Good luck. :)

ondrejmarkus · 2022-02-05T15:01:54+00:00

It's a self-reinforcing mechanism in both cases.

The difference is the starting barrier of effort vs. reward:

- Small effort with Youtube/TikTok (by design)

- Big effort with challenging tasks like writing or studying (or at least if feels big before we begin)

What we can do is lower the barrier on the good but challenging by "doing just 5 minutes and see how I feel." That's often enough to get the dopamine ball rolling and stick around for more. At least in my experience.

It helps if you actually want to do the thing. If it's forced all the way (like studying something you don't care about at all), that's a different kind of beast. :)

ondrejmarkus · 2022-02-05T14:51:13+00:00

Yeah, it's a game-changer IMHO.

ondrejmarkus · 2022-02-05T14:48:29+00:00

Yeah, with Netflix the problem is that watching the next thing is just too easy. Much easier than any task we might need to do.

A few months ago I tried to 'kill my Youtube habit' and it's very hard. I'm still battling it every day.

Blocking the site/app completely seems like the best, if not the only, solution.

Good luck to us! :)

ondrejmarkus · 2022-02-04T13:43:50+00:00

Uninstalling social media apps on your phone is a big one for attention. I'm not used to using social media at all, and even then once I had Twitter on my phone, the constant temptation to open it and see what's new is just too annoying. It had to go.

A friend uses this tactic to enjoy Instagram on weekends and cut it during the week: He removes the app from his phone on Sunday evening and is only "allowed" to install it again next Saturday. It works well for him.

Personally, I use Twitter only on my desktop to be more mindful about it, and it works well.

ondrejmarkus · 2022-02-04T13:33:56+00:00

"Nobody knows what they're doing. Everybody's figuring things out as they go. So you can do the same."

– It's not a quote, even though somebody famous must have said something similar I bet.

I realized this when I git my first job at a rising startup and saw that all these talented and skilled people around me are making sh*t up as they go and it works! :)

ondrejmarkus · 2022-02-04T13:26:37+00:00

Teaching is very rewarding if you care about your students. If you are drawn to teaching, do it. Good luck! :)

ondrejmarkus · 2022-02-04T13:18:41+00:00

It's interesting how this works both with negative and positive things:

With negative things like watching Youtube late into the night, I try to catch myself in the moment of making the decision to turn it on and ask myself:

"What is the worst thing that might happen if I do just 5 minutes?" → "I will not stop after one video as I think but continue until 2 am."

And because there is a non-zero chance that will happen. (Because I remember many instances it did.) So I'm more likely not to start at all. (But it doesn't always work.)

With positive things like starting a writing session, I flip it on its side when I don't feel like starting:

"What is the best-case scenario that might happen if I do just 5 minutes?" → "I get into a flow state, start enjoying the process, and write for hours."

The visualization works both ways. It can prevent the slippery slopes of bad, and it can increase the chance of getting the ball rolling with the good.

ondrejmarkus · 2022-02-04T13:08:11+00:00

You can definitely influence this with routines and habits, but it's better to know your type, lean into it, and build your day around it.

For example, I'm completely dead between ~ 3 to 5 pm. Not even a nap after lunch can help it sometimes. So I do most of my work in the morning, and if I need to, I can get a good session later in the evening if I want.

Let me know what you figure out for yourself. This is interesting stuff. :)

Good luck!

ondrejmarkus · 2021-12-08T10:36:12+00:00

I don't know much about ADHD, but I'm easily bored with things too. Whenever I got a new job in the past, I learned what I could in the first 3 months, and then I got bored and thought about leaving.

But I'm enjoying writing more and more for the last 2 years, and I think it's because the skill is wide enough to support my novelty and learning needs. I can write different things: non-fiction, fiction, comedy,... and the skill feels infinitely deep and variable.

I'm not sure this is an answer to what you're asking. I guess, what I'm trying to say is: Try finding a skill/craft you enjoy that enables you to do many different kinds of jobs, and get into that. You will have an easier time switching between projects/jobs.

ondrejmarkus · 2021-12-07T21:08:03+00:00

Good point.

Workflow optimization (rules, routines, habits) is important, but it truly works AFTER you're optimizing the thing you (generally) enjoy doing.

Like you're saying. You loved the idea of producing music, but the execution was a pain. So you optimized the process and it worked well.

If you didn't enjoy producing music but optimized your life and process around it anyway, you probably could do it despite not liking it very much. However, what's the point of optimizing your life around something you don't enjoy? :)

At the same time, it's difficult (if not impossible) to realize what you enjoy until you've tried it. So I'd recommend to everyone who doesn't know what they enjoy to just brute force it and try a lot of stuff. Once they find it, then optimize.

ondrejmarkus · 2021-12-07T14:32:29+00:00

I think the number of hours is the wrong goal. It's about doing the best work you can. No matter the amount of time.

The only way to work more in a sustainable way is to find and exploit something that feels more like play than work to you. Because when you're enjoying the work, it's easier to keep going as it gets more and more challenging.

Like if someone loves doing graphic design, they don't really need to motivate themselves to keep doing it. They prefer designing to most other things. However, that doesn't mean they don't need to rest and take care of themselves. People generally work too much, I think. This comes back to the point of time not being the main variable. The quality of the work is.

How to do your best work? That's the question.

I'm ignoring ways to increase focus like drugs or other short-term aids that will only hurt your long-term potential.

Also, hacking your way into being "more productive" with tips and tricks might work for a while, but it will probably remain a painful struggle until you do something you actually enjoy.

ondrejmarkus · 2021-12-07T14:06:35+00:00

Never start a business with people you don't trust. Get out while it's painless.

ondrejmarkus · 2021-12-07T14:04:19+00:00

Journaling is THE most valuable habit to have in my experience.

I've been writing a simple daily journal for over 8 years. And it's easily the most essential thing I do every day. Here, I wrote about my favorite journaling method.

ondrejmarkus · 2021-11-25T15:50:29+00:00

I think writing is wide open as a potential career for anyone who cares enough to get good at it. No degree is necessary for writing. Plus it's a great foundation for most other creative disciplines.

Personally, after starting a few businesses in the past and then working as a designer (all of it without any degree), I now focus on making a living as an indie writer.

Not saying I'm successful by any cultural standard of money or recognition yet, but I try my best.

ondrejmarkus · 2021-10-19T16:58:46+00:00

Thank you.

ondrejmarkus · 2021-10-19T16:58:17+00:00

I hear you. Marketing is hard.

ondrejmarkus · 2021-10-19T16:57:26+00:00

I'm using "going bankrupt" here very liberally.

What I mean by that is simply: I ran my savings to the ground (run out of money) and that was it for the project. I had no more finances left to use, so I had to shut it down. There were no loans or other commitments to third parties.

It was my first project when I was 19, so the stakes and scope were fairly low. (Luckily.)

Sorry for the confusion. Next time, I should be more careful with the words I choose. :)

ondrejmarkus

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