The dumbest and best productivity trick
And why I’m rebelling against it anyway
Welcome to the 130th issue of Subtle Maneuvers, my fortnightly newsletter on wriggling through a creative life. Please note: I’m taking the next four weeks off, returning to your inboxes January 8th. Hope you all have a lovely and restorative holiday!
Last week, a reader sent me a link to a recent article about James Bond creator Ian Fleming’s “tool for hyper-productivity and success”—which, as soon as I read that phrase, I wanted to close the tab; these days, I much prefer to have my snail-paced productivity validated than to read about yet another ultra-prolific work machine.
But I persevered out of curiosity and, guess what, Fleming’s supposedly genius “rule” for writing is the oldest and least glamorous trick in the artist’s repertoire, which I think all of us do to some extent, and which we should probably all do to a much greater extent.
Here it is, according to Inc.:
Fleming's method involved isolating himself in a mundane hotel room, in a location offering no distractions, forcing him to focus solely on his writing. This environment, devoid of alluring alternatives, left Fleming with two choices: write or do nothing.
If this sounds familiar, it’s because many others have done the exact same thing. Indeed, the most famous proponent of this tactic—which Inc. labels “forced boredom”—may be Raymond Chandler, who said in a 1949 letter (emphasis mine):