I like to set a timer. "One hour to figure this out". Then I don't work on it for another day/week. The brain solves problems during sleep, no need for me to stress out. :)
I use timers aggressively for all kinds of tasks, both to nudge myself out of procrastination (I'll decide how long I want to allow, with a tacit "if I still can't make myself stop, at least make the next timer shorter"), or to overcome resistance to certain tasks by time limiting them. I find that often if I set myself a 30 minute timer for $boring_task, once I get into it I'll often then happily continue, or set another timer at least, or worst case time-limit my break from the task before getting back to it.
It's not unusual for me to have several dozens timers go off during the course of a day.
One thing a timer does is it gamifies it. This helps keep me focused. Probably same the psychology used in crappy mobile games ^_^ Sometimes I do go over, too, but I try not to. I try to have something to look forward to afterward (play with kid, do chore, eat candy, whatever)
It also increases my happiness because I'm OCD and love lists, and I'll start to assign tasks BY DAY in asana (get these done mon, these Tues, etc) and then I go nuts. But just setting time blocks and not assigning tasks to days I'm just if not more productive and happier.
I like to looks at problems that I am stuck on before sleep. Although I do not feel that I am thinking about them before falling asleep or while sleeping, it seems that I can solve them much easier the next time I look at them.
My first experience with this was with a girl in my teenage years, and we were doing some hand game that I forget now, and she's like "don't worry, tomorrow you'll know how to do it" (????)
... and that basically was my software career in a nutshell :P
that's excellent advice! I do that too sometimes.
Somehow related: Putting a STOP-LOSS on your worries, as Dale Carnagie says in the excellent "How to stop worrying and start living"
