[0815test]

Being able to reach "flow" quickly when setting out to work on something is what matters, even more so than "work ethic" or "grit" alone. In the longer run, relying on the latter just sets you up for burnout and the stress of overwork; whereas the former is sustainable and even quite enjoyable.

Physical activities such as shoveling snow and chopping wood are good at inducing flow, whereas it can take some effort to reliably enter that state when doing something more abstract. I think this is why the Pomodoro method is so popular, it can be used to "gamify" all sorts of tasks since the regularly-scheduled breaks act as a physical marker of your achievement.

[taylodl]

That's a good point and brings up something I still struggle with - "flow." I'd never heard it put that way but that gives me another tool to help me up my game. Thanks!