When Inspiration Strikes

At work on a Saturday - you know you're jealous. Got here via my long saturday run, long being anything beyond the 4-mile standard run to work, so it's not saying too much. This morning I ran west along the river then north once I got to Battersea park...and that probably means nothing to you. Point is, it was one of those wandering runs where you know the general direction you want to go but have no idea which street to take. Found myself conveniently at the Whole Foods, where my reward was a nice piece of pizza and some pear-flavored gelato.

Ok, back to the subject at hand. I've been doing this whole school thing for a few years now, and one thing I've learned is to take advantage of those all-too-fleeting moments of inspiration. We're constantly pressured either internally or externally to work more, work harder, and do more. I don't care how much you love your job, there are always times when you aren't necessarily feeling it. I've found that motivation is often the limiting factor, so when it comes, take advantage of it. If that happens to be a Saturday, or 11PM on a Tuesday, then so be it*. The times of complete immersion in your work are almost always more productive and efficient anyway. This freedom of schedule is one of the great things about science - scheduling work around your state of mind (to some extent) is very freeing.

*actually, working at Imperial at 11PM is not a good idea - at 11, all of the doors lock, meaning you can't get out if you are already inside. So if that experiment just can't wait, make sure you have an air mattress.