![]() This is not just about having the right mindset, it is also about having the right workflow. Instead of struggling with adverse dynamics, highly productive people deflect resistance, very much like judo champions. Studies on highly successful people have proven again and again that success is not the result of strong willpower and the ability to overcome resistance, but rather the result of smart working environments that avoid resistance in the first place (cf. If we work in an environment that is flexible enough to accommodate our work rhythm, we don’t need to struggle with resistance. Luhmann was able to focus on the important things right in front of him, pick up quickly where he left off and stay in control of the process because the structure of his work allowed him to do this.Taking smart notes is as simple as it gets. There is quite extensive empirical and logical research on this phenomenon (for an overview: cf. The simplicity of the structure allows complexity to build up where we want it: on the content level. The best way to deal with complexity is to keep things as simple as possible and to follow a few basic principles.The challenge is to structure one’s workflow in a way that insight and new ideas can become the driving forces that push us forward. How do you plan for insight, which, by definition, cannot be anticipated? It is a huge misunderstanding that the only alternative to planning is aimless messing around. Even though planning is often at odds with the very idea of research and learning, it is the mantra of most study guides and self-help books on academic writing. This is not only demotivating, but also unsuitable for an open-ended process like research, thinking or studying in general, where we have to adjust our next steps with every new insight, understanding or achievement – which we ideally have on a regular basis and not just as an exception. To keep going according to plan, you have to push yourself and employ willpower. If you make a plan, you impose a structure on yourself it makes you inflexible. Having a clear structure to work in is completely different from making plans about something. Good structure allows you to do that, to move seamlessly from one task to another – without threatening the whole arrangement or losing sight of the bigger picture.This is where the organisation of writing and note-taking comes into play. Not having willpower, but not having to use willpower indicates that you set yourself up for success. Having a meaningful and well-defined task beats willpower every time. Every task that is interesting, meaningful and well-defined will be done, because there is no conflict between long- and short-term interests. And nobody needs willpower to do something they wanted to do anyway. ![]() Nobody needs willpower not to eat a chocolate bar when there isn’t one around. We know today that self-control and self-discipline have much more to do with our environment than with ourselves (cf. What does make a significant difference along the whole intelligence spectrum is something else: how much self-discipline or self-control one uses to approach the tasks at hand. Luckily, this is not the whole story.
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