I want to share 2 storirs about me on handling work status:

  1. Short term remote work
  2. Get more focus time in the morning

Life in Suzhou#

Back in the summer of 2021, my house rental was canceled by the owner, and I had to move to another place. By then, the renting prices in Beijing were too high for me to rent a house. Fortunately, I was lucky enough to book a house one month after my current house was canceled. So, I needed to find a place to live for one month. My friend decided to move to Suzhou, a city near Shanghai, which is much more affordable than Beijing. For a month, I sat in a coffee shop and worked remotely.

I can always remember my state and emotions: rain falling from the sky and hitting the leaves of trees in the garden of Starbucks as I was developing a completely new project in Go, using a new geo-search framework for this purpose.

And I did it; every week, I released a new version and by the end of September, I had completely rewritten the whole project in Go, making it much faster and more stable. This accomplishment meant I could sleep well at night, just in time for the upcoming China National Day.

After that month, I moved back to Beijing and returned to my office work. However, I always remember that month in Suzhou, where I was able to focus on my work and concentrate on my project while handling meetings and messages via IM & Email.

It was a balance where no one disturbed me in physical space, allowing me to complete more work. I cherish those days and wish to maintain this habit in my daily life moving forward.

Life in 2024#

I wake up at 5 am on a cold morning in February and cannot fall back asleep. After two hours of trying to sleep, I finally get up and start working. When I arrive at the office at 8 am, I find it ideal for doing deep work without any meetings or interruptions. My productivity has significantly increased compared to before. I have maintained this habit for a month and have found it extremely beneficial.

Typically, I focus on coding in the morning and attend meetings in the afternoon. With the increase in my productivity, I have been able to dedicate more time to communicating with PM/Client/QA/… teams regarding the status and plans for future work.

In contrast, a few months ago, I would arrive at the company at 10 am and work until 7 pm. I found myself becoming anxious and unable to concentrate on my tasks. My PM and colleagues frequently requested my presence in meetings to discuss various details. In those situations, their demands often seemed pointless to me.

And by the way, because of arrive company at 8am and leave at 5pm, I can have more time with my family. It’s the most important thing for me after reading the note from a laid off Cisco Manager.