Having a lot of trouble this quarter. Feeling down, lacking concentration, no momentum. Don’t know why, I felt like things were going well fall and winter quarters after I got back from a year on leave to work. Perhaps I should have applied for an internship this summer so that I can keep things in perspective. Going off to work really refreshed me. So I think maybe I should keep an internship in mind for next summer.

From all the “How I Did It” stories, it seems that building a regular habit is key. E.g. s1mr’s “Read one article a day.” And I find it’s true, if I stop working one day (because too many meetings, seminars, random useless crap to take care of, etc.) then the next day, it’s harder to get back into it…so I don’t really get back into it…and then the next day is even harder.

So I think I’m going to have to implement some kind of plan for myself, to do at least one thing every single day. Maybe a commitment to myself to spend at least 30 minutes working each day, even weekends, even if I don’t feel like it, just to keep the momentum going. A concrete goal would be better (like, finish a XYZ each day) but it’s hard to say what I would actually do because each day might be different (one day, read a paper, another day, fix some bugs in my code, etc.). So I think the half an hour a day thing will work. Okay, it’s decided. I will try this then. And set up a 43things reminder for it. :-)