[ChrisMarshallNY]

It's a nice site, and she does seem to be quite qualified. I applaud her drive to "give back."

That said, I have found that I don't really need this, myself. That's mostly because I'm a bit "on the spectrum," and tend to drop into what I call my "fugue state." When I am in this state, I can churn out a vast amount of really good code, with almost no working documentation, as I can keep a fairly complex system in my head, applying adjustments as I meet friction. In fact, the most common reaction I get from people is "You didn't write that!". It's very draining. I usually come out of the state feeling exhausted and, sometimes, sick (I once puked my guts out, after spending about 10 hours, working on a painting). I used to have an employee that was a lot more "spectrumish" than I am, and he easily knocked my best efforts into a cocked hat. His work was stunning. I suspect that it still is.

But that kind of thing is very individual, and can't be taught. I have written a great deal about my personal process, but I feel it is more expository, as opposed to educational (https://medium.com/chrismarshallny). I am quite aware that I am nowhere near the "top of the heap," and that there are prodigies out there that, on a bad day, can blow away my best.

[have_faith]

Sounds very similar to Hyperfocus[1] from the AD(H)D world which is something I became very interested in for a while. There are certain subjects that can sustain a state of hyperfocus for me and certain subjects that make me question if I'd had enough sleep. On the surface this sounds a bit psuedo-sciency as if asked anyone would say "yeah I also have things that interest me or don't..." but there's certainly something extra going on when you experience it first hand.

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyperfocus

[ChrisMarshallNY]

Well, there's reason that there's so many programmers with at least mild autism. One of the symptoms is obsessive focus. Can work wonders in coding.

Otherwise, I tend to ignore most of these "connect to your inner power" things.

I don't dispute their validity (usually), and have friends that have done things like the Tony Robbins courses and Lifespring, and whatnot. It seems to have helped them. It's just not the way I feel like going.

I do have a personal process that depends on a fairly rigorous self-discipline. Not many "shortcuts." Does seem to work.

[mrkstu]

My main problem is guiding hyperfocus to the thing that needs to get done right now.

I have a weird anxiety avoidance that makes me willing to do almost anything, including very hard things, if it isn't the thing that is necessary. I can hyperfocus on just about anything else.

I've slowly learned to redirect back to the necessary thing, but its been a decades long path to overcome the tendency.

[mjayhn]

Meditation helped me out with my ADHD way, way more than I expected. It took about a month of daily 10-20 minute practice but it gave me this control over my racing thoughts and shiny distractions that felt completely foreign to me. Like oh, I do have this willpower muscle I just haven't been using it much.

I'm speaking in past tense because since covid I haven't meditated and my mind has become a racing mess. If you can will yourself into doing it I'd highly recommend trying it. You can always stop if you don't see a benefit.