Question for Thutmose

[Czechs Mex]

So. You are working, going to school, and finishing RPG Maker projects at a ridiculous pace. How in God's name do you get so much stuff done? It's like you have 24 more hours per day than the average person.

This is actually a serious question. You're clearly doing something right, and I want to do it, too.

Tell me the error of my ways, oh wise Egyptian one.

[Big Rick Cook]

Re: Question for Thutmose

my guess is slave labor

[1ce]

Re: Question for Thutmose

I wouldn't mind increasing my productivity, even though I keep up a pretty good pace on my game.

If you have a secret to it, do tell!

[Karr Lord of Chaos]

Re: Question for Thutmose

fresh motivation id wager. we used to be young with the software and filled with ideas, that is until the limited and time bending warring the game has on us. perhaps thutmose has some springing passion for what he is doing?

at the very least he doesnt fret about minor issues the same way many of us do. ive polished what i have so much that ive damn near worn a hole in it. i too would like to know what this fantastic elixer of youth is.

[Thutmose]

Re: Question for Thutmose

lol Okay.

Basically I'm just a very quick learner, and fast worker. I read a lot, have for a while now (I own lots of books, and am always buying more - check out my library: http://www.librarything.com/profile/Khepresh), which gives me a wide knowledge base to serve as a good foundation for all my projects.

Further - I don't do any work that doesn't teach me anything; there's no reason to waste time working on something that doesn't add much to your experience and skills, imo. So, that may mean I have a low GPA for not doing silly, pointless, homework, but I guarantee I know more about the subject than the other students 90% of the time (and not infrequently, more than the professors too) since I read the material (and then some) and do my own projects that aren't just mindless busy work. My basic philosophy is: If I'm not learning something while doing it, then it's not worth doing. No one's last regret was ever "I wish I did more homework". It's one of the greatest wastes of time most people ever experience (I say that both as a student and an educator); but you have to be willing and able to teach yourself everything without relying on a teacher or professor, and be willing to live with a low GPA (usually I have between a 2.5 and a 3.0) - so it's not for everyone.

I love learning new things, and that requires hard work, dedication, passion, and sacrifice. I have absolutely no social life outside of work. I go to work, go to school, and the rest of the time I am at home either reading or working. No non-work friends, certainly no lovers (plenty of pron, tho), and no extraneous social interaction. If it doesn't accomplish something tangible, and the benefit(s) of the relationship don't outweigh the opportunity cost, then odds are it's a waste of time.

There is something to that "having and extra 24 hours per day" remark, as I am also a bit of an insomniac. I might not sleep for 24, 48 hours. Gives me a lot more time to get work done.

In short - I'm a loner, workaholic, insomniac who is obsessed with his education and productivity. i.e. an ideal programmer, systems developer, and all-around technology-based jack-of-all-trades.

I take things, my work most of all, very seriously.

I love helping people, especially helping them to learn new things. It's why I work in education. It's why I enjoy doing projects for this community (aside from all the really cool stuff I get to learn while doing them). If I wasn't able to have a career that I enjoy, with jobs I actually like, then I certainly wouldn't be so happy.

Again, this sort of life isn't for everyone. It's not always easy, but it makes me happy. Most likely it would make the vast majority of people miserable. All things considered, my life is pretty damn good, imo. And about the only thing I regret is not living my life, my way, sooner.

My advice: figure out what makes you happy and stick with it no matter what other people think; especially when you're tired, discouraged, and looking to give up.

Not that I'm some sort of zen-master with the perfect life or anything, or the best person to be giving advice. I only know what works for me. That's all.

And some of the above might seem a bit disjointed. I've been up for over 30 hours and had a long day at work today. And I'm eating as I type this. Don't feel like editing the above for clarity and concision.

[Czechs Mex]

Re: Question for Thutmose

Further - I don't do any work that doesn't teach me anything; there's no reason to waste time working on something that doesn't add much to your experience and skills, imo. So, that may mean I have a low GPA for not doing silly, pointless, homework, but I guarantee I know more about the subject than the other students 90% of the time (and not infrequently, more than the professors too) since I read the material (and then some) and do my own projects that aren't just mindless busy work. My basic philosophy is: If I'm not learning something while doing it, then it's not worth doing.

Hmm... I like that mindset. I'll have to think about this and see how much time I waste doing pointless stuff every day. I'm probably a little too unnecessarily obsessed with grades to just not do homework, but even so, I'm sure there's other things besides homework I'm wasting time on.

I also spend a lot of time in my office, but I don't work at a very vigorous pace like you said you do. I guess I just need to figure out a better way to focus; e.g. not checking up on the Pavilion every hour.

[Valkysas]

Re: Question for Thutmose

I guess I just need to figure out a better way to focus; e.g. not checking up on the Pavilion every hour.

[Thutmose]

Re: Question for Thutmose

I also spend a lot of time in my office, but I don't work at a very vigorous pace like you said you do.

At the office, I don't take breaks (unless I really need to) or lunch - I just continue working, or reading (my job involves a lot of reading).

One of the things that's great about my new job is that I am learning all sorts of things: from AppleScript and Adobe InDesign to project management and iPad app development. So I work extra hard there.

I'm probably a little too unnecessarily obsessed with grades to just not do homework

Not worrying about grades is incredibly liberating. Saves so much stress and time, and it lets me actually learn valuable things, and acquire useful skills. While everyone else in my class in HS in my Senior year was trying to get all their little busy-work worksheets and BS assignments done just so they could add a few points to their grades, I was teaching myself programming and database design. It really hurt my grades, but guess who the District hired to be a program admin right after graduation? To help design a tutoring program that helps other students raise their grades? Once I was out of HS, the district didn't give a flying fig about my grades - they cared that I could do a job that no one else in the entire district could do.

Future employers aren't going to care if you get an A+ in English or Chemistry (they don't check your grades). But they do care if you have the knowledge and skills to do the job. Especially if you can do more than just the basic work. My new job is at an education materials publishing company, almost every employee was or is a teacher (including the founder, president and entire editorial department staff), and they didn't so much as ask me if I even passed English. They took one look at my resume, saw what skills and experience I have and said "You're hired" - gee, I really regret not spending more time working on my GPA and instead choosing to learn, study, and work on my own projects. >_>

Grades are largely meaningless (again, I say that both from experience as a student, employee, and a person who works in a public school district). They are just an indicator that you did your work; they don't mean you learned anything (valuable or otherwise) and they don't mean you acquired any worthwhile skills for your time investment (I'm sure sentence diagramming is going to be a great addition to a person's skill-set as an employee >_>).

And having a wide range of skills and abilities is always going to be valuable and beneficial. Being able to do a lot of different things will help ensure you always have employment more than having a 4.0 will.

If you really want to impress an employer, don't bother with getting high grades. Focus on learning a lot of stuff (high grades != learning), choosing to learn a few "core" things in detail that you can be something of an expert in, and also get some kind of certification(s)/credential(s) relevant to your job. If you are in the kind of field I am (IT, systems dev, general business, etc.) take a few classes at a community college on project management and then go take the CAPM credential exam. If you have more experience and education in PM, then go for the PMP credential. Or get MS Certified, or any number of others that are out there.

Another unsolicited piece of advice, which you probably heard from your father (I had to learn it from several books on business and men's fashion), is to always dress professionally. I always wear at least a pair of slacks, dress shirt, and tie to work (I some times wear a suit), even on "casual Fridays" (never wear blue jeans to work on casual friday - never) - and I dress better than everyone but the owner (I'm the only man in the company who wears a tie). Guess who people come to when they need something? The guy who looks professional, who looks like he knows what he's doing (and, I do know what I'm doing; go figure) - I am based in Editorial, but I'm working on projects for every department in the company now. I've been there three days and every department head has something they want me to look at and improve.

However much I always wanted to think that appearance doesn't matter, and that people should be judged by the content of their character rather than their outfit, it's a load of BS in the real world - especially in the business world. Appearance and image are very important. And, when you look good, you feel good, and you do better work, imo. A tie goes a long way (if you're a man... or Avril Lavigne).

I realize that this has sort of turned into a kind of lecture, but these are the sorts of things that I have found to be really beneficial to me and my career thus far, I'm just passing them along. They are also things that I have learned and been told by others (in some cases my professors - remember: not being focused on grades doesn't mean that you can't or shouldn't learn valuable lessons from your teachers/professors, and certainly doesn't mean they should be disrespected). Take it however you want to; ignore it and do your own thing, whatever.

[steps off soap-box]

[John Mora]

Re: Question for Thutmose

In my area of study, if you get less than a B you essentially flunk out of the program.

[Thutmose]

Re: Question for Thutmose

In my area of study, if you get less than a B you essentially flunk out of the program.

Yeah. Grades are important for some careers. Not in mine.

[Lord_Mofop]

Re: Question for Thutmose

Yeah. Grades are important for some careers. Not in mine.

I'm the exact same way. I'm only taking classes that interest me at my local community college and I essentially just go to class for the lecture. If I happen to get a piece of paper that says, "degree", on it, well that's a plus too. But I'm not in it for the piece of paper.

[orius]

Re: Question for Thutmose

And here I thought Thutmose had used his technical knowledge to build a device that warped the local space-time continuum, thereby giving him 36 hours in a day.

[Thutmose]

Re: Question for Thutmose

And here I thought Thutmose had used his technical knowledge to build a device that warped the local space-time continuum, thereby giving him 36 hours in a day.

Quiet, you'll blow my cover!