Do the right work

You’re generally encouraged to think that being at work means you’re working.

Of course, that’s not true. Working days are spent traveling, meeting, chatting, doodling, procrastinating. The idea that you’re working every minute you’re in the office is just a necessary illusion – why should an employer force you to be in there otherwise?

In the same way, when you’re working for yourself, on your own projects, it’s easy to get congratulatory about putting in the hours.

I showed up today. I paid my time. I did the work.

But how much did you actually get done? If your computer is your digital office, how much time did you spend at the water cooler? Checking email, tweeting, reading blog posts – it all feels close enough to work to kid yourself.

Here’s something to try: instead of allocating yourself hours, allocate chunks of a project. Each day, you have to write 1,000 words. Or publish a blog post. Or complete a page of your book. It takes as long as it takes.

When you stop marking your work in terms of time, there’s nothing to be gained from procrastinating for another half hour.

It’s not just about doing the work, it’s about doing the right work.