Ask HN: How do you stay focused when learning or working on something?
I am starting to feel that my ability to focus has deteriorated significantly over the last several years. I want to attribute it to modern media and its ever hungry attention-monsters, but I think there is also a large part of me that is unable to  handle these distractions.<p>I have tried everything from Cal Newport’s Timeblocking to Beeminder to Forrest to what not, but at the end after a couple of days of intense effort none of them seem sustainable. In fact, to take it a step further I have also tried things like Vygotsky&#x2F;Piaget’s Constructivist methods like ZPD to attain flow, but it is as if mind knows that the difficulty of a certain topic is just not worth the effort over an ever stimulating YouTube video on “Productivity &amp; How to be focus better”. It is as if I am stuck in a rut.<p>The last 4 years of my job as a software engineer at a mid-size decent paying company, where I know that I can just make do with my current skills(C++&#x2F;GDB&#x2F;Valgrind) for another 10 years fixing memory leaks, has made me too complacent. In fact, In the last 4 years I have tried multiple times to learn Machine Learning, Functional Programming, Computer Graphics, Compiler Design only to stop at day 5 or so at the same spot(logistic regression, functors, Vertex buffers, Operator Precedence Parser). I am exhausted and seriously do not understand what I can do. (Note: Thinking back I think it was always the case that while working on&#x2F;learning one, something else seemed more interesting, making me juggle and never master anything completely).<p>I was hoping to know if any of you have been in in my situation and have been able to learn&#x2F;work on hard and interesting projects. If so how were you able to stay focused amidst all the distractions.<p>Any pointers is appreciated