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[starsrift]

Working on games in the bedroom/cave/home is easy - seductively easy. In fact, it's so easy, it's nothing to pound keyboard 16hrs, 7 days a week and feel satisfied. The computer's right there, it beckons, and all you have to do is sit down and lovingly stroke those keys!

Only, it's nearly impossible to do that on a year-round basis, at least I've found. Probably because the bulk of programming is boring, as one previous coworker related to me as an adage from the more sexist 80's, "women's work" - which is to say, glorified word processing.

I've tried multiple techniques to try and not burn out - working multiple projects, switching from coding to graphicking to storywriting and back, but I sorta fled doing work at all except implementing a a handful of disappointing lines a week, when nothing more engaging would take my attention.

Then I popped my head up on my 'site last week and noticed, Holy Shiat, I've not finished anything since last November! And consequently, I'm about to swing into a hard month of 16hrs, 7days, just in order to try and finish one or two projects already at better than 50% completion this month just to feel better about the slackness.

tl;dr: How do you avoid burnout and extreme work/play swings?

[bento_smile]

Do something which has absolutely nothing to do with games!  Make sure you give yourself time to work, and time to play, and stick to it! You can't work all the time, and all the role switching in the world isn't going to change that, in my experience. 

(Although at the moment I spend all my time at the computer... sitting cross-legged with a laptop, I worry my legs will atrophy and I will become a daruma.)

[baconman]

When I burn out on my projects, sometimes I see what I can contribute to others' projects. It changes the pacing a bit and keeps it fresh, but still keeps me engaged. Or all else fails, I have a 3-day rule: Any 3 days of the month I want/need are mine to do with as I please. I treat this like another line of work, and if I need a "me day," I take one without any code-writing whatsoever. And I always take all 3 days, even when I don't think I need them.

[compositeredfox]

After going solo I tried to keep the 10-to-6 schedule going on but I always kept working until dinner (wich is around 9,10pm here). Also, the same thing you talk about started happening. I would keep going overnight and then I'd get days where I would do nothing.
What I got from that is that if you're starting to feel burned out, forcing yourself to work is the worst you can do. And slacking in front of the computer is also a bad thing. You have to take some time off, and take it seriously. Go out, walk, watch something, anything outside your workplace.
And like bento_smile says, you have to give time for each thing, and stick to it.

[dantheman363]

I feel that the best way to deal with burnout is by having a list of small, easily achievable goals. Then checking each one off as you finish them feels very rewarding and shows the progress that you have made. Once you finish the small list of goals, make a new list!

[gimymblert]

Two screen, one for work, one for leasure: the first is my (rip) laptop where i do everything boring for my game, behind i have the tv with my wii and wii fit hooked. I wake up, i'm doing network socializing, i make some wii fit 60+mn work out (to stretch the body), eat lunch, do computer jobs, do paper work, eat dinner, watch entertainement (youtube, anime, american series, etc...), go out for a walk, go to bed. Some days it's all about the girls (yay) or administrations (baw). repeat ad nauseum.

[frags]

Try something non productive for a change Watch a movie, do something else.

[Muz]

Yeah, lists help a lot. As a physicist who burned out doing his PhD explained to me, it might be a bit of basic instinct. One type of animal sometimes sees a threat... it's basic instinct is to run, but it's basic instinct is also to hide. It then gets confused between the two of them and... just sits there eating grass.

If you're finding yourself just sitting there in front of the computer doing nothing, you might want to consider writing a list of what exactly you should do. I think the human brain can only juggle 7-9 things in the head comfortably. If you're the type of programmer/game designer who keeps everything in your head, then jot it down. Work goes on a lot more effectively when the memory in your head isn't thrashing all the time.


So far, my best solution is to find something inspiring. What got you to start doing whatever you are doing? I watch Conan the Barbarian when I need inspiration as to why I created my battle engine. I watch Iron Man to remind myself why I became an engineer. I read Chris Crawford's books when I need some game design inspiration. It's not all effective, more like a pill, but it helps.

[PowRTocH]

I usually just play Crash Mode for a few minutes at a time. It's really good for picking up and playing, and entertaining friends.

[Richard Kain]

I usually just take a break. Sometimes this can last for weeks. If I really care about the project in question, I will always come back to it. Burnout is something we all have to cope with. Simply not thinking about the project for a while can help you to clear your head. In fact, its probably better to make such breaks shorter, but more regular. Take at least one day of the week where you DON'T work on your project.

[Melly]

Working on games in the bedroom/cave/home is easy...

You know, I once though it could be interesting to literally live and work in a cave.

[gimymblert]

Working on games in the bedroom/cave/home is easy...

You know, I once though it could be interesting to literally live and work in a cave.

  you know ... too much ...

[SHilbert]

Some things that seem to help me:

Exercise. This can improve your mood if you do it consistently, and it doesn't have to take a lot of time out of your day.

Get outside your house and hang out with other people. I think the human brain starts acting funny without enough real human contact, and this can easily happen if you're working alone all day.

Show what you're working on to people who have never seen it before. Sometimes you'll find the things that have you chasing your tail mentally are complete non-issues (and things that you thought were non-issues are more important.) It's easy to get "too close" to a project and end up with odd priorities.

Clean off your workspace and make it minimalist and attractive. It shouldn't matter in theory, but I find I work way more effectively with a clean desk. Less clutter is less distracting.

You may not have any of these problems, of course (I don't mean to presume you're a shut-in that doesn't exercise!) but they're things I've run into.

[starsrift]

Thanks guys, I been trying most of these things. :/ Lists certainly help focus!


Maybe I should be more social, though. Which I've not done. . .

[voidSkipper]

I usually just play Crash Mode for a few minutes at a time. It's really good for picking up and playing, and entertaining friends.

Did nobody else find this hilarious? :C

[mewse]

1.  Lists, as already noted, are absolutely essential.  Yes, you're smart and you have an awesome memory, and you don't actually need to write these things down to keep from forgetting them, but the process of getting things actually written down on paper forces you to really clarify exactly what needs to be done.  Plus, once it's down on paper, you can free up that space in your head to think about your immediate tasks.  I find that real paper notes are best -- I prefer to use something as non-digital as I can manage.  Currently, I use small notebooks and a fountain pen.  But in a pinch, an online task list can work, too.  Having a list that you can methodically work your way through dramatically lessens mental churn.  For me, mental churn is my #1 cause of burnout.

2.  Work reasonable hours.  About forty to fifty hours per week, tops.  It's fine to work a few 16 hour days in a crunch, as long as you have enough break time to recharge, afterward.  But if you habitually overwork your brain, it'll stop being creative, and will slowly give out on you over time.

3.  Do other things.  Get out of the house, read interesting books, see films, socialise with friends, etc.  Basically, give your brain a chance to change gears and not consciously think about your game. 

[G-Factor]

Are you talking about burnout or lack of motivation? Burnout to me means you are still working on it 16 hours a day but your productivity drops significantly. Lack of motivation means you simply stop working on the game for very long stretches at a time.

If you're burnt out, just take a break. That usually gives your brain a chance to reset. If your motivation is waning;

• Like others have said, make a list of tasks
• Set completion dates for as many things as you can (particular features, first level, loading/saving, character movement...etc)
• Set realistic goals for your projects. Remember that you are only one person
• In my opinion, it is very important to get into the habbit of completing stuff. That's why everyone suggests you start with Pong, Tic Tac Toe, Tetris, simple Mario clone...etc. The reason this is valuable is that you start to train your brain into thinking that 'completing projects' is the norm. If you keep aiming too high and quitting part way through, your brain becomes used to quitting and it's difficult to retrain your brain to function otherwise.

[Montoli]

Going to have to side with the "take a break" crowd here.

From personal experience:  It is fun to keep going.  It is fun to say "yay, weekend time, going to press on and try to get that new level in place!"  It is fun to work for 2 weeks straight and then look at how much I have accomplished.

But as has been noted, it is very hard to sustain for long periods.  Personally, I find that if I don't get at least one, (preferably 2) days of doing NOTHING USEFUL each week, then my productivity drops dramatically.  In fact, my brain basically says "no, I'm not working today" and goes on strike.  I'll spend the day staring at my monitor wondering why I can't get anything written, feeling bad about myself, and generally beating myself up for not getting anything done.

Eventually, I figured out the connection.  And I figure, if I'm not going to get anything done either way, I might as well do it in a way that makes me happier.  So now, even when I'm stressing over a deadline, I make sure to go goof off on the weekends, and stop working after about 8-9 hours of work in a day.  I have found this to be much more sustainable!  And I strongly recommend that anyone else setting their own schedule take a serious look at how their week goes.  I know that there is some major temptation to "iron man" through a project and work nonstop, but I really truly believe that in terms of net productivity over long periods, that I actually get more done by taking breaks than I do when I just try to tough it out.  In other words, it's not just about me keeping sane - it makes sense from an efficiency standpoint.

-Montoli  (who is totally arguing with a straight face that blowing a weekend playing starcraft is more efficient than working.)

[I_smell]

• Drive on the wrong side of the road to increase boost
• Use nitrous on long straights

[RCIX]

But as has been noted, it is very hard to sustain for long periods.  Personally, I find that if I don't get at least one, (preferably 2) days of doing NOTHING USEFUL each week, then my productivity drops dramatically.  In fact, my brain basically says "no, I'm not working today" and goes on strike.  I'll spend the day staring at my monitor wondering why I can't get anything written, feeling bad about myself, and generally beating myself up for not getting anything done.

Hey! get out of my head!