Summary
- Studying some of the most prolific people in history to glean some of their patterns and daily routines to perhaps adopt into your own life
Key Takeaways
- “Sooner or later, the great men turn out to be all alike. They never stop working. They never lose a minute. It is very depressing.” – Pritchett
- Currey dispels this notion and gives examples of some great minds who were renowned procrastinators, full of self-doubt and prone to torturous blocks and insecurity
- “Inspiration is for amateurs” – Chuck Close
- “I think in the cracks all the time. I never stop.” – Woody Allen
- “I certainly have a routine, but the most important thing, when I look back over my career, has been the ability to change routines.” – Anne Rice
- Maria Popova at BrainPickings put together a great visual of many of these artists routines, habits and productivity
What I got out of it
- It is interesting to note that there are some major trends but the details differ. Chunks of time between 3-4 hours with no distractions to do deep work (whether morning or night) and addictions of some sort seem prevalent (coffee, food, women, drugs, etc.).