   My TODO list
  I was reading a blog post and he was talking about how he keeps himself motivated and how he does things basically (lack of words). Anyways something he has is a PAD and the night before he rights everything down on what he needs to accomplish (coding wise) the next day. I thought wow how simple and so I thought I would try it because with my severe case of A.D.D I lack the ability to concentrate and focus on a set of tasks more or less I sit around all day in lala land thinking of how should I approach this and I'll ask other people on these forums questions like.Should I do this?Should I do this before I do that?How should I do this?What should I do now?Basically not doing ANYTHING at all...all day long.. this is basically my life in a nutshell "o hi guyz thhar isth this willy hawt gurl i met @ schkewl tueday shweld i awk hur out?".You know what I say to that? Grow a pair, seriously. Ask her out. Stop thinking, stop asking, and just do it.Annnnyways so this TODO list I'm hoping will solve my problem. Not only with learning DirectX but also scoring it with the ladies AMIRITE ^^.So I'm gonna post my little TODO list up and see what you guys think of it. Just for the sake of conversation o_O. Janurary 23, 2009 - Read Part 2(Direct3D Fundamentals) - Chapter 1 (Direct3D Initialization): Pgs. 62-85  NOTE: Ask any questions you may have upon completion of the chapter.Read Part 2(Direct3D Fundamentals) - Chapter 2 (The Rendering Pipeline): Pgs. 86-101 NOTE: Ask any questions you may have upon completion of the chapter.Janurary 24, 2009 -Read Part 2(Direct3D Fundamentals) - Chapter 3 (Drawing in Direct3D): Pgs. 102-117  NOTE: Ask any questions you may have upon completion of the chapter.Read Part 2(Direct3D Fundamentals) - Chapter 4 (Color): Pgs. 118-124  NOTE: Ask any questions you may have upon completion of the chapter.Janurary 25, 2009 - Read Part 2(Direct3D Fundamentals) - Chapter 5 (Lighting): Pgs. 125-137  NOTE: Ask any questions you may have upon completion of the chapter.Read Part 2(Direct3D Fundamentals) - Chapter 6 (Texturing): Pgs. 138-147  NOTE: Ask any questions you may have upon completion of the chapter.Though copying pasting this from my wordpad screws up the format and my cute lil pok-a-dot-list isn't there. Whatever!   
  It's a good idea generally (personally I like to hand-write my lists and physically cross them out when I've done them) but you can't mistake organisation for motivation. If you genuinely want to do everything on your list but are just indecisive, it's a great tool. However, if you're just procrastinating, it's less effective. Lists can help you break down your workload into manageable chunks, but the motivation has to come from you.From reading your post, I'd guess that your problem is the former, which is a good position to be in and a ToDo list will only help you move forwards. Stick to it.   ;  First, check out todoist and TiddlyWiki. They're both great for this kind of thing. And of course, you should read lifehack.Then, there's a story you might find interesting. I'd always wondered how hardcore players in RTS games managed to do so many things at once—build a base, explore, send secondary attacks on areas that are undefended, and micro-manage the main battle to kill more troops and lose less. I could manage any of these things on their own, but switching from one to another fast enough was impossible: I'd spend all my time building my base without exploring, or I'd be so taken up in the main battle that no secondary attacks could be done. So, I set out to correct this by reprogramming myself. I figured, the difference between good old DOS and the subsequent Windows was that Windows was time-sharing: it had a kernel that regularly interrupted what it was doing and ran something else. And if I managed to set up a similar interrupt system, I could handle a lot of things at the same time. My brain is event-based: when I notice something, I start thinking about it. So, I connected some events (a new unit is built, a unit is attacked, an enemy is spotted) to a "kernel mode", so that I would go into that mode every time the events happened, and check the list of all things to be done. I did this by waiting for the event to happen and, when it happened, actively pursuing the associated activity. I've applied this technique to many other fields. For instance, every new paragraph in a GameDev.net post sends me into kernel mode so I can check various things. I also use a hardcore kernel mode every time I finish eating, when I scan for important things I should be doing (sending out mail, printing things, calling people, buying items). And there's yet another when I return home (water my plant, wash the dishes or some clothes, pay my bills). You could try doing something like that as well: decide on a single action you should be doing next (without thinking about what happens after that yet) then dedicate yourself to that action. In the event "I start thinking about something else", force yourself back on track regardless of how important you think that something else is.   ;  Nice! thanks for those links. Also your last sentence I actually just did that. I read your post, then checked ONLY one link then I made a reply then I went back to checking the links. Why not just check the links and then make a reply or reply and then check the links? Why switch back and forth in no direction what so ever?*shrug*   ;  I've literally already fracked up the ability to do a simple task in reading 2 chapters today. What a shame. Though I have been busy all day I just now been able to sit down at my computer. Though just because the day is already over and I failed my task already. My day isn't over until I pass out. I'm gonna read these 2 chapters before I go to sleep no matter how tired I am. Even though I'm exhausted already :(. And I have a horrible illness right now. It's called the hickups, yeah it totally sucks.   ;  In my experience, TODO lists are a good way to organize your time and get a sense of accomplishment when you check something off as done. However, you have to make sure that you don't start ignoring your todo list. This can happen if the list is overwhelmingly long or the tasks are overwhelmingly difficult. I've found that the hardest part of any project is getting started. With this consideration in mind, organize your TODO list so that the first few things that need to be done are easy to accomplish. You'll get yourself into the 'groove' much quicker and waste less time procrastinating. When I write code, I try to leave myself an easy entry point for the next time I pick it up. I never leave a function half finished or put off a big problem. I also leave myself little notes in notepad, like "Make sure that program compiles in linux!"I also remember reading a post a few months ago about waking up early and exercising as the first activity for the day. I haven't tried it yet, but the idea is to start your day off in a highly productive and active way so that the rest of the day follows suit.   ;  I should try that :D maybe running?   