I'm a CS student at a university and work part time as a software developer/intern, and I've got a decent social life. But lately I've been really, really, really good at being unproductive. Like, scary good. I used to go to the gym regularly, but I've gotten lazy and sleep in instead. I've got a lot of personal projects (not school or work) I'd like to work on, but I feel guilty about not doing my homework or not putting in as many hours at work (or not doing chores or whatever else needs to be done), so I'll typically just sit on the computer in no-man's land going GameDev->StackOverflow->Facebook->Check Email->(repeat). That's not a good choice though, because them I'm not doing personal projects or work/school projects.

So what helps you be productive? Not just when programming, because once I sit down to seriously program, I'm productive. But before that. I need to get back to the gym, get more serious about doing my homework early (instead of the last second), just knock-off things on my miscellaneous/chore list, get more done so I can go to work more, etc. What helps you get things done and stay on top of things?

Coffee. Like a lot of coffee.

Getting as much sleep as your body requires. For me, its about 10 hours.

And listening to good music. Lots of Tiesto.

I'll typically just sit on the computer in no-man's land going GameDev->StackOverflow->Facebook->Check Email->(repeat)

I've experienced this too, and, I'm no shrink, but I think it's some kind of learned behaviour seeking instant gratification. A learned 'rut'.
I'd treat it like any harmful addiction, either by going cold turkey or using mindfulness.
You can edit your HOSTS file to make those websites disappear to force withdrawal on yourself or a bit less extreme, recognise this loop as some kind of leech that's using up all your productive energies with little output, be mindful of it's presence at all times, and train yourself to feed it less.

When you get to the [repeat] part, force yourself to go for a walk or something. Make a list of things you want to get done, and allow yourself to be unproductive between tasks. When you sit down at the computer, do it with a plan for what you want to do, and don't go straight into the loop. See how long you can do something else before you subconsciously alt-tab into the browser and load up those sites. Keep tabs on this and have a little internal celebration whenever you can cross off a task having given in to distractions less than last time.

So what helps you be productive? Not just when programming, because once I sit down to seriously program, I'm productive. But before that.

I use coffee as a little delimitating ritual to get into gear. I'll waste a bit of time on forums/email/etc, then figure out what I should be doing, then go make a coffee and put some music on as a marker for 'productive time now', and then drink it while I work. Often I'll realize an hour later that I only drank half my coffee because I was too busy working.

I'll typically just sit on the computer in no-man's land going GameDev->StackOverflow->Facebook->Check Email->(repeat)[/quote]
Haha, yeah, I know that. You really have to pull yourself out of that cycle forcefully, usually to break it I go make myself some noodles, then eat them while watching some south park/other and then I'm all fueled up to work!

GameDev->StackOverflow->Facebook->Check Email->(repeat).

damn, replace stackoverflow with exophase, and you pretty much have my loop.

i tend to find that it's pretty common for me to run the loop when coding some of the more boring tasks, or especially when i don't know exactly how i want to tackle a problem, so i keep going through the sites, then maybe write a line, repeat, until i eventually i have something.

the only solution i have is.....get to a less boring part of programming, or something i have an exact plan of attack for completing.

Do you really need to be that productive? Can't you just chill? Are you sure you'd be happier if you squeezed the last second out of a day for ""meaningful"" activity?
Maybe I'm misunderstanding but IMHO doing that many stuff effectively will burn you out in no time.

so I'll typically just sit on the computer in no-man's land going GameDev->StackOverflow->Facebook->Check Email->(repeat).

God yes. This is what I always do and I hate it. In all seriousness, even playing a game instead of this nonsense would be healthier.(a walk outside would be ideal though, of course ).

You could try Randall Munroe's (of XKCD fame) method: Every time you finish a task, power down your computer. Want to start a new task, even if it's just checking your email or hitting up Reddit? Reboot that sucker. After awhile, I understand, the "instant gratification" part of your brain is removed from the equation, because your brain instinctively knows there won't be any instant gratification. Once that lizard-brain sonofabitch is out of the picture, the theory is that it's a lot easier to stay on task.