Turn Insomnia into a Productivity Boost

March 18, 2008 – 2:59 PM

Insomniac and coder Chad Perrin says that hackers who stay up all night coding can get more done in those hours than most people can in a month because an all-nighter lends itself to getting into “hack mode,” or the state of flow. The Jargon Wiki defines hack mode as:

A Zen-like state of total focus on The Problem that may be achieved when one is hacking (this is why every good hacker is part mystic).

Perrin says that insomniac coders kick into hack mode because there’s no one else around to distract them and they have to stay quiet (and avoid the television) so not to disturb others sleeping. He also says the surreal perspective one gets at sunrise after a whole night awake encourages “crazy,” creative thoughts and new ideas to emerge. Insomnia can really suck, but if you have to be awake all night, knocking something out in hack mode seems like the best way to do it.

Source: Lifehacker