A few weeks after the last post I got quite a dramatic change in my daily work. More specifically, I got a fantastic full time consulting opportunity which I decided to take so then since I’ve been busy programming more standard business software.
I really like the work (programming is fun!) but mostly it’s been a welcome change from working alone from home. Because since I started working on all on my own I’ve learnt a few bad things about myself: without any pressure to get things done I easily lose focus and drive which turns to me just playing games, surfing, slacking, etc. And at the end of the day I would feel frustrated at myself for not being disciplined and working productively; just for me to repeat the same thing the next day. I hinted at this in the last post but didn’t go into any details.
As I mentioned I believe it has to do with feeling no pressure to get anything done and not feeling much of a reward when I do actually finish something. A deadline could probably help in some ways but would most likely just stress me out on top of making me procrastinate. Instead the most effective solution I’ve discovered is such a small thing such as working somewhere else (ie, not home) and sitting next to someone you can talk to, even though you’re working on different things. I don’t know why but it works for me but it does and it’s a lot more fun when you can take a break and discuss what either of you are working on.
Combining the limited time for game development when doing full time consulting with the reasons above I decided to put A Maze Boss on hold and instead focus on a new project with a couple of newly acquired game development friends. It’s not that I’ve grown tired of my puzzle game, if anything I’m even more excited now that I’ve had the opportunity to take a break from it for a while.
The new game is coming along well though I with only a few hours a week it’s taking time. And as of now, in 2017, I’ll be consulting fewer hours so I will return to solo development and continue on A Maze Boss part time. But this time I’m hoping to take what I’ve learned about myself to not repeat my mistakes.