Becoming a Laser-focused Software Engineer
Photo by Łukasz Nieścioruk on Unsplash
The late, great Steve Jobs had an enormously useful ability. He could identify his top three priorities and obsessively laser in on them in such a way that he could execute his ideas efficiently.
If you ever find yourself staring at the screen waiting for your brain to get in gear (and feeling a million miles away from a prime Steve Jobs) lock into these clever tricks to give your focus a turbo-boost.
Forget struggling against your brain chemistry. Let’s hack it instead.
The Posture Hock
Healthy coding is a thing, and it can help your focus and output. If you have good posture, you supercharge your focus (evidence, evidence).
Sitting up will give your focus an ergonomic upgrade, and positioning your monitor to just above eye level will enable you to straighten your back.
TL;DR: Straighten up, lift that monitor, and let your brain do the rest.
Breathe Deep, Stay Sharp
Software developers are under a high amount of stress due to continuous deadlines (thanks, Agile) and over-commitment.
So, it will come as a relief to know that using specific breathing practices can increase wellbeing and resilience (evidence). Think of it as a natural way to increase concentration, without any drawbacks.
TL;DR: Take a deep breath (or 25) to flip your brain’s focus switch.
Master Your Brain’s Natural Rhythms
Are you getting the sleep you need? Are you preparing for bed at a sensible time? Are you taking breaks in a way that helps your focus?
Understand that your day is full of peaks and troughs, harness this to make sure that your performance (coding time) fits into where your body is best prepared to perform. Your mind passes through an alternation of focused and multitasking modes (evidence), and software engineers should harness these patterns of focus.
When we talk about cycles we are not talking about a coffee-sugar-buzz-crash loop.
TL;DR: Harness your brain’s focus cycles to maximize productivity.
The OG Focus Drug
Sometimes I need a caffeine bomb to wake me in the morning, but this should not be a habit of software developers the world over.
Drinking caffeine can improve logical reasoning (evidence). Use this drug with care since it can sabotage your sleep later, destroying your rhythm (see above).
TL;DR: Time your coffee strategically to stay sharp all day without the crash. No caffeine after midday.
Ditch the Carbs, Save Your Focus
An overabundance of carbs can kill your productivity (evidence). Those sugar spikes and troughs make you sleepy and can drag your focus down like a rock in a lake.
Just have a salad at lunch. Ok?
TL;DR: Cut carbs at lunch for a smoother afternoon ride.
Conclusion
Focus is incredibly important for software engineers. If there are ways to obtain more focus and productivity, then we should take them.