The magic of doing "nothing"

Neil Gaiman’s rule for productive writing is to “do nothing”

This little productivity tip comes from the legendary Neil Gaiman. Now, if you don’t know who Neil Gaiman is yet, he is a British author who’s work you may have encountered as movies or television shows – Stardust, Coraline, American Gods and most recently Good Omens, which he co-wrote with Terry Pratchett.

When Neil Gaiman says “Do nothing”, it’s a pretty clever productivity hack that I wanted to share with you. In a recent interview with Tim Ferris, Neil Gaiman shared one of his rules for writing. What was interesting for me to hear is that some authors do not like the process of writing. I don’t think Neil is one of these authors, but he did describe how some very well known authors struggle to write as much as they needed to. Many of them have resorted to locking themselves away in really bad hotel rooms. Hotel rooms that are so bad, in locations that are so boring, that they are practically forced to write because there is nothing else for them to do.

To do more, do less

Neil Gaiman’s version of this technique is much less dramatic but still very effective. When he sits down to write he gives himself permission to write, or to do nothing, and I mean nothing. He can sit quietly. He can think about things. however, he’s not allowed to do anything else.

He can’t do a crossword. He can’t play with his young son. He can’t look at his phone. He gives himself permission to do only two things – write, or do nothing.

The trick is that eventually, even if you’re struggling with writing, the idea of writing becomes a lot more interesting than doing nothing. And so eventually you get back to work. And you work for a while. And you’re allowed to stop whenever you want, but you’re just not allowed to do anything else but write, or do nothing.

Embrace boredom

What I love about this technique is that oftentimes boredom is a fantastic catalyst for getting back on track, for thinking through things, allowing your mind the opportunity to slow down, wander and avoid distraction, which is something that a lot of people struggle with today. I know that I sure do.

The idea of just sitting down to accomplish your task, but then giving yourself permission to do nothing, is something that I plan to incorporate into my day. This technique will be especially helpful when working on projects that are challenging. When something is challenging, or you feel uncertain about it, the tendency is to distract yourself and to do something else more fun. Practically anything else but the thing you sat down to do.

What do you think?

Is there anything that you need to do that is challenging and that you find yourself putting off? Do you find yourself feeling distracted and unable to get certain things done? Give ‘nothing’ a shot! I’d love to hear what you’re experience is.