I've been trying various "noprocrast" approaches over the years, including /etc/hosts and HN's own noprocrast settings. The one that finally worked for me was disabling distractions directly on the router - it covers all my computers, as well as my phone. I set it so that distracting sites are disabled during work hours (Monday-Friday, 08:00 - 18:00).
Fwiw, I've found that the inversion approach of fighting procrastination works considerably better for me. So, instead of trying to not do something I try to do something instead. In more detail this means focusing on achieving a certain amount of deep work hours per day. First this means that I have to condition myself to want to do deep work in the first place. Rereading the first few pages of the book from time to time helps with this part.
Also, if the last thing I think about before falling asleep is about what it is that I wanted to do next, then the next day starting to do meaningful work is a lot easier, as I actually feel like I want to try this thing I thought about. Keeping a work logbook is another good method in being able to start up easier, as you can just pick the easiest item in the list and do that. Once the ball starts rolling and you get deeper in the zone, then procrastination is rarely much of a problem.
I’m with you on this. Doing something is much easier than resisting something.
That said, I also do something like OP to block out some sites, but that really only is important as I “get the ball rolling”. I noticed myself habitually tabbing to twitter or something whenever I got to a “hard part”
For me, setting myself up to be productive and have focus is more impactful than anything I try to do in the moment of trying to be productive. Running or biking a few miles, eating food that makes me feel healthy, not drinking alcohol, and getting good, quality sleep.
Being physically healthy is exponentially more effective than any anti-procrastination tools or techniques I have very tried.
I don’t know if the OP is even on Facebook, but I it noteworthy that it’s not on their list of sample blocked sites. I don’t find FB to be addictive either, unlike a lot of people. Usually when I check it, I find myself a quick skim of notifications and the newsfeed to be sufficient, really just a minute or two a day. It runs counter to the popular narrative of Facebook addiction.
Anyone else feel that way? I wonder if it’s because Facebook has no longer become a place for novel content, and there’s an aversion to lingering on it. Of course this is my personal opinion, but I do think it’s easier to find topical content on Twitter and HN, and so they’re more distracting and worth blocking.
I have a Facebook addiction. I post something; I crave feedback. When I get feedback, it's like a little jab of oxytocin to my system.
Twitter, Linkedin - I don't have the same problem. I post something (when I remember, which isn't often) and then forget about it. I can go weeks without checking LinkedIn. I tried Instagram and just didn't 'get it'. Reddit annoys me. TikTok scares me - I tend to avoid mirrors at the best of times, so the thought of short video clips of me floating in the aethers ... it's never going to happen.
I'm probably a little addicted to HN; I have no desire to cure myself of the site just yet. I'm not convinced that blocking the site in my browsers/devices would help me if I wanted to cure myself - I'd probably end up spending time trying to subvert the blocks (as a learning exercise, of course).
Disabling access from /etc/hosts has been very useful for me, though my similar [1] productivity script did not work as well as I wanted it.
For quite some time I had been using hostess [2] to enable/disable specific websites, yet this too had a couple of problems.
1. Docker Desktop (macOS) keeps appending on my /etc/hosts without asking me when I start it. This requires usage of `hostess fix` to remove duplicate entries.
2. Changing /etc/hosts requires sudo access, which means I have to keep inputting it when I need to make any changes.
Eventually I just `vim /etc/hosts` instead of `sudo hostess fix && sudo hostess on news.ycombinator.com`
a side note, but a dimple but effective strategy I use for getting of time consuming websites is to just use a password manager for all my accounts on those sites. logging out of those accounts, and having the password only be accessible via another long and complicated password (to access the password vault) is usually enough of a barrier in the moment
I did a combination of this strategy and the one in the article. I changed my hosts file, then changed my root password to something with ~20 characters, then I gave the password to my wife (coworker would have also worked) and told them not to let me have it before 6pm. In cases I need to install something I just had to convince them of the necessity.
The human element really worked wonders compared to a poorly technical solution.
The only no-procrast tool that is absolute and unforgiving enough to actually stop me from procrastinating is Self Control [1] (MacOS only afaik). Anything else which offers an escape hatch will always be useless for professional procrastinators.
Q: How do I disable SelfControl once it has started?
You can't. That's the idea. Just wait.
"But, but but..." you say.
Seriously, chill out. It's not the end of the world.
The timer will run out and the internet will come back again. In the meantime, you may find comfort in curling up in a ball under your desk and rocking back and forth for a while.
---
The whole FAQ is worth reading, but that one just cracked me up.
The problem with this approach is HN, reddit are necessary for work. I search HN all the time for technical info to avoid the blogspam and SEO marketing crap on Google. For me, the key to managing procrastination has been accountability - tracking my time and making myself radically accountable to friends I respect.
Hacker News also has a noprocrast feature that’s designed to keep you away from the site for a while if you’ve been using the site for too long. It’s a little buggy with how it does detection, though, so I have it turned off.
I don't think it's buggy, but it's probably too simple. From my observation, it just starts the counter on any HTTP request (with appropriate session data in it, of course). This means if you have HN open on a mobile phone and/or you have lots of tabs, there may be spurious reloads happening even when you're not looking at the page - all of which will start the noprocrast timer.
I have found few things as effective as shutting down my X server and just working in Emacs in the console. Obviously less useful if you're doing web stuff (although NetSurf exists).
Thanks for the catalyst to re-enable my /etc/hosts approach to simplifying my life.
I'm surprised to see that adding:
127.0.0.1 youtube.com www.youtube.com
to /etc/hosts doesn't seem to block youtube, but every other line I added blocked/routed as expected. Is there something special about youtube and chromium?
Yes, some sites are more resilient somehow. I experience the same thing with twitter. You could try flushing your dns cache but IIRC that didn't even work for me.
I've tried various versions of Noprocrast as a chrome and safari extensions.
I feel like that it falls into the category of that it will be 50/50 that it will work for you or not.
For me I would eventually circumvent the whole thing anyways. You may also want to think about why you are procrastinating? Then figure out how to alleviate that.
SelfControl is a free hosts file based blocker with some added features that prevent you from undoing your own blocks until the specified time period has elapsed.
I really appreciate that HN has a noprocrast tool. I’ve also used Apple’s Screen Time feature to help me break away from distractions. While I feel such tools are crutches for good self-control, I am not yet disciplined enough to not need them some times.
Facebook claims to care about its users. I think that’s hogwash. If FB actually cared I think they would have settings to enforce limits on engaging with their platform. But of course they have no incentive to do that because it cuts into their revenue stream. Apple has little problem putting limit tools in place because they get money just when you buy the device—not necessarily every time you use it.
Can someone please help me with how to achieve the same thing on windows that works on any browser ? I tried some DNS blocking programs and can't get anything to work properly.
I know someone who had the same problem and didn't want to pay for one of the subscription apps so he built his own [0]. Looked great from the demo he showed me but I don't have Windows so I haven't tried it personally.
Back when I was forced to work on windows I'd add rules to the default windows firewall. E.g. to block twitter I'd add a rule to drop all outbound packets to 104.244.40.0/21.
[+] [-] TeMPOraL|5 years ago|reply
More details about implementation: http://jacek.zlydach.pl/blog/2020-05-25-blocking-distraction....
[+] [-] baxtr|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] unicornporn|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] jgilias|5 years ago|reply
Also, if the last thing I think about before falling asleep is about what it is that I wanted to do next, then the next day starting to do meaningful work is a lot easier, as I actually feel like I want to try this thing I thought about. Keeping a work logbook is another good method in being able to start up easier, as you can just pick the easiest item in the list and do that. Once the ball starts rolling and you get deeper in the zone, then procrastination is rarely much of a problem.
[+] [-] caleb-allen|5 years ago|reply
That said, I also do something like OP to block out some sites, but that really only is important as I “get the ball rolling”. I noticed myself habitually tabbing to twitter or something whenever I got to a “hard part”
[+] [-] metrokoi|5 years ago|reply
Being physically healthy is exponentially more effective than any anti-procrastination tools or techniques I have very tried.
[+] [-] Apocryphon|5 years ago|reply
Anyone else feel that way? I wonder if it’s because Facebook has no longer become a place for novel content, and there’s an aversion to lingering on it. Of course this is my personal opinion, but I do think it’s easier to find topical content on Twitter and HN, and so they’re more distracting and worth blocking.
[+] [-] bgutierrez|5 years ago|reply
Twitter, on the other hand, will have me doomscrolling every single time.
[+] [-] rikroots|5 years ago|reply
Twitter, Linkedin - I don't have the same problem. I post something (when I remember, which isn't often) and then forget about it. I can go weeks without checking LinkedIn. I tried Instagram and just didn't 'get it'. Reddit annoys me. TikTok scares me - I tend to avoid mirrors at the best of times, so the thought of short video clips of me floating in the aethers ... it's never going to happen.
I'm probably a little addicted to HN; I have no desire to cure myself of the site just yet. I'm not convinced that blocking the site in my browsers/devices would help me if I wanted to cure myself - I'd probably end up spending time trying to subvert the blocks (as a learning exercise, of course).
[+] [-] pandatigox|5 years ago|reply
[1]: https://selfcontrolapp.com/ [2]: http://getcoldturkey.com/
[+] [-] fbelzile|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] cstigler|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] sirodoht|5 years ago|reply
For quite some time I had been using hostess [2] to enable/disable specific websites, yet this too had a couple of problems.
1. Docker Desktop (macOS) keeps appending on my /etc/hosts without asking me when I start it. This requires usage of `hostess fix` to remove duplicate entries.
2. Changing /etc/hosts requires sudo access, which means I have to keep inputting it when I need to make any changes.
Eventually I just `vim /etc/hosts` instead of `sudo hostess fix && sudo hostess on news.ycombinator.com`
[1] https://github.com/sirodoht/productivity.sh
[2] https://github.com/cbednarski/hostess
[+] [-] curiousgal|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] unknown|5 years ago|reply
[deleted]
[+] [-] ausbah|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] AndrewOMartin|5 years ago|reply
The human element really worked wonders compared to a poorly technical solution.
[+] [-] Wistar|5 years ago|reply
I find I do not miss them.
[+] [-] puttycat|5 years ago|reply
[1] https://selfcontrolapp.com/
[+] [-] tambourine_man|5 years ago|reply
Q: How do I disable SelfControl once it has started?
You can't. That's the idea. Just wait.
"But, but but..." you say.
Seriously, chill out. It's not the end of the world.
The timer will run out and the internet will come back again. In the meantime, you may find comfort in curling up in a ball under your desk and rocking back and forth for a while.
---
The whole FAQ is worth reading, but that one just cracked me up.
https://github.com/SelfControlApp/selfcontrol/wiki/FAQ
“Until that timer expires, you will be unable to access those sites—even if you restart your computer or delete the application.”
That’s… intense.
[+] [-] mnd999|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] Shared404|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] buzzerbetrayed|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] nojs|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] saagarjha|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] TeMPOraL|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] lucumo|5 years ago|reply
It did stop me posting; I still wasted my time reading the site though. You can visit the site anonymously. A half win, I guess.
10 years felt like such a long time back then, nearly forever.
[+] [-] raldi|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] thom|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] saagarjha|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] danicgross|5 years ago|reply
The broader issue for me isn’t a particular website. It’s brain-dead consumption of feeds. Typing guarantees that you’re thinking a little.
Even with email, it made me less likely to overthink things. It gave a bias to action. Keep moving, keep typing.
I had a whitelist of exceptions (IntelliJ, Terminal, etc).
Unfortunately the script broke a few years ago. I keep on meaning to fix it but I’ve been too busy reading feeds.
[+] [-] e40|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] ISL|5 years ago|reply
I'm surprised to see that adding:
to /etc/hosts doesn't seem to block youtube, but every other line I added blocked/routed as expected. Is there something special about youtube and chromium?[+] [-] aeruder|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] smegma2|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] unknown|5 years ago|reply
[deleted]
[+] [-] zitterbewegung|5 years ago|reply
I feel like that it falls into the category of that it will be 50/50 that it will work for you or not.
For me I would eventually circumvent the whole thing anyways. You may also want to think about why you are procrastinating? Then figure out how to alleviate that.
[+] [-] kissgyorgy|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] CodeWriter23|5 years ago|reply
https://selfcontrolapp.com/
[+] [-] ashton314|5 years ago|reply
I really appreciate that HN has a noprocrast tool. I’ve also used Apple’s Screen Time feature to help me break away from distractions. While I feel such tools are crutches for good self-control, I am not yet disciplined enough to not need them some times.
Facebook claims to care about its users. I think that’s hogwash. If FB actually cared I think they would have settings to enforce limits on engaging with their platform. But of course they have no incentive to do that because it cuts into their revenue stream. Apple has little problem putting limit tools in place because they get money just when you buy the device—not necessarily every time you use it.
[+] [-] idclip|5 years ago|reply
Checkout these two files
https://github.com/Shokodemon/smallhacks/blob/master/sh/depr...
https://github.com/Shokodemon/smallhacks/blob/master/sh/proc...
[+] [-] vsskanth|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] elektor|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] sixhobbits|5 years ago|reply
[0] https://lazarfocused.com/
[+] [-] dugmartin|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] falcor84|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] f00zz|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] godtoldmetodoit|5 years ago|reply
Definitely a fan of the service, works for me to help me get in a flow state and worth the few bucks they ask for.
[+] [-] ChankeyPathak|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] majkinetor|5 years ago|reply