How Do You Get Through Boring, Monotonous Tasks?

[Julie Moriarty]

So you're at that stage in a project where you have a lot of the same tasks to do, over and over and over. RO sanding comes to mind, as you work through the different grits until you reach 180, 220 or whatever grit you stop at. You stand there for hours, slowing moving the sander over the workpiece, changing disks along the way, until it's nice and smooth. Then you grab the next piece and start all over again. And your feet get tired and your neck gets stiff and you're bored out of your mind.

How do you deal with the monotony? Music helps but the sander and dust collector often drown out the sound. TV is out because you have to watch what you're doing. LSD might be fun but I don't remember Timothy Leary ever being a woodworker and there's probably a good reason for that. :rolleyes:

So, how do you cope?

[Matt Meiser]

I wear ear buds under headphone-style hearing protection when mowing or long sanding or planing sessions.

[Rich Engelhardt]

I smoke.
I don't smoke when doing mundane boring things.
I set a time to smoke a cigarette when the mundane boring task is finished.

Incentives work extremely well...

[glenn bradley]

Using your example of sanding; you have obviously fallen for the untruth that woodworker's dread sanding. This is a myth perpetuated by abrasive manufacturers and their 'sanding accessory' brethren. Sanding is the phase when you get to put your personal stamp on your work. Your attention to surface preparation says a lot about your care and skill as a woodworker. Getting a smooth open plain on that table top. Getting just the right amount of burnishing on that ebony accent. don't fall for the pack of lies perpetuated by special-interests that sanding is a tedious chore to "just get through". Embrace this most critical step to your creative process . . . . that is unless you're one of those people who sand to 180 and then spray plastic (read poly) all over your furniture to make it look "good". :D:D:D

[Troy Turner]

I'll take a break when I get bored. I know the project is still going to be there when I get back. And yes, I have to finish sanding or what have you, but I won't stand there if I'm bored. Learned a long time ago, don't be in the shop if I'm tired, bored, or don't feel like being out there.

[Ted Calver]

I always take a break and go do something else....which explains the 47 unfinished projects around my house:)

[James White]

I play audio books via my phone through a Bluetooth fm transmitter into my fm headphones. I go for non fiction stuff such as theoretical physics and psychology. Very interesting stuff for me. I was surprized to see that audible has over 250 titles on physics alone.

These headphones are a bit pricey. But the microphones keep you aware of your surroundings and safe.

http://www.amazon.com/3M-Peltor-Hearing-Protector-M2RX7A/dp/B0007KQUJS/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1365685212&sr=8-1&keywords=peltor+alert

[david brum]

I get audio books from my library. I get them free online, mostly from the Seattle Public Library, but most libraries have them. I download a bunch onto an old ITouch and listen through a pair of Worktunes earmuffs. It really helps with tedious jobs. Great for lawn mowing also.

[David Weaver]

I cut sanding time WAY back by a single pass with a smooth plane. Then it's just a matter of whether or not sanding is going to occur at all. If it does, it's just two sanders, one with 220 and one with 320 on it to pretty much take all of the chatoyance off of the surface.

(it was several years before I solved the issue of tearout, first by building a couple of specialized infills, and then second by learning to properly use the chipbreaker on a cheap bench plane).

The problem with monotony for me is when you do something with a bunch of similar parts and you get bored and mark one piece off of another and find you used the wrong part to do the marking. If I know I'm doing something that I'm getting mixed up over a routine issue because of fatigue, I just step away for a little bit, maybe even take a 15 minute snooze to get a brain reset.

If I had to sand gobs of parts, I don't think it'd be an issue...like many men, I can turn my brain completely off for several hours at a time with no problem at all. It's like the joke that always comes up when a wife says "what are you thinking about", and the husband says "nothing". It really is...nothing. Space, no conscious thought.

[John TenEyck]

Sanding for hours? Never done that. I try to work as cleanly as possible to eliminate as much sanding as possible. Planer, drum sander, build to as close a perfect fit as possible, flush with a sharp hand plane if necessary, card scraper and/or finish sand. Sanding for hours means there are problems upstream that need to be addressed. Woodworking should be pleasurable if you're a hobbiest (actually, it should be pleasurable if you're a pro, too, but I recognize work is work no matter what the job), and none of the steps required to produce something beautiful should be boring or monotonous. Look at what you're doing that is causing you to have to spend so many hours sanding and fix the underlying problem.

John

[Rod Sheridan]

When I sand, as opposed to when I use a plane, I sand everything with one grit, change grits, repeat.

I guess it's boring, however it's also exciting because the next step is taking that pile of sticks and assembling them into a piece of furniture..........Rod.

[Mel Fulks]

If I remember right ,you might be working on those cabinet doors. I run the face side of all the material through wide belt sander.Machine all pieces face down . Then the RO sanding is pretty quick. Any project that is going to be sanded needs to be planned to make it as easy as possible. One way the "professionals" deal with sanding is to join organizations that specify how many knife marks must be in each inch ....when you get a complaint,show them the rule book.

[loren forney]

Sorry James but you have missed the mark here. History and historical fiction is where it's at! Audible? Cant be beat! I have a couple hundred selections in my Audible library. My wife? I am certain she literally has around 1000 selections. She commutes 34 miles each way and Audible never gets turned off.

If you have never tried the service they offer excellent trial options. If you like history my all time favorite novel is 1776 written and narrated by David McCullough.

I use bluetooth wireless in ear headphones fed by either my ipod touch or my android phone.

Loren


I play audio books via my phone through a Bluetooth fm transmitter into my fm headphones. I go for non fiction stuff such as theoretical physics and psychology. Very interesting stuff for me. I was surprized to see that audible has over 250 titles on physics alone.

These headphones are a bit pricey. But the microphones keep you aware of your surroundings and safe.

http://www.amazon.com/3M-Peltor-Hearing-Protector-M2RX7A/dp/B0007KQUJS/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1365685212&sr=8-1&keywords=peltor+alert

[Ellen Benkin]

iPod with podcasts. I love Car Talk and Wait Wait Don't Tell Me.

[Bill White]

Glen, you and I agree completely about the 180 and poly issues.
Bill

[Pat Barry]

Julie, you need an apprentice!

[Michael Dunn]

Listen to music.

[Greg Portland]

So, how do you cope?If a task is taking a long time then I ask myself if there is a better way. Perhaps packing up the wood and renting some time on a wide belt sander is worthwhile. For large amounts of planing consider having your mill surface all 4 sides (S4S).

[Larry Browning]

Using your example of sanding; you have obviously fallen for the untruth that woodworker's dread sanding. This is a myth perpetuated by abrasive manufacturers and their 'sanding accessory' brethren. Sanding is the phase when you get to put your personal stamp on your work. Your attention to surface preparation says a lot about your care and skill as a woodworker. Getting a smooth open plain on that table top. Getting just the right amount of burnishing on that ebony accent. don't fall for the pack of lies perpetuated by special-interests that sanding is a tedious chore to "just get through". Embrace this most critical step to your creative process . . . . that is unless you're one of those people who sand to 180 and then spray plastic (read poly) all over your furniture to make it look "good". :D:D:D

Glen has hit on the right approach for any supposedly boring task. Find something about the task that you can latch onto as extremely important and that without you doing a superior job of the task, the whole project will fail. Not being bored is all about attitude.

[Michael Dunn]

To help me enjoy sanding more I bought some Festool sanders. There abrasives are outstanding and surprisingly well priced.

[Chris Padilla]

Sanding is boring and monotonous but I enjoy seeing and feeling the wood come alive as each grit is progressed through.

If you're finding problems standing, get yourself a nice mat to stand on...it really helps A LOT.

Perhaps the most boring, mind-numbing, tedious sanding I've ever done was when I took a bunch (13) of shop-cut walnut veneers at ~3/32" and sanded them all down to 1/16" on my drum sander. I took my time, cranking the wheel a 1/4 turn (1/64"), and running each piece through twice per height adjustment. I also had the sander conveyor running at its slowest speed. The dust collector was howling, the sander was howling, and it took F-O-R-E-V-E-R to get everything sanded. However, the results were F-A-N-T-A-S-T-I-C and all the veneers came out beautiful and dead-nuts on at 1/16". I now walk past that piece of furniture every day and 3 years later it still looks good and I'm reminded of the work I put into it and how it was all worth it. :)

[Jeff Duncan]

There are a couple posts questioning the time spent sanding? I don't quite get this as I didn't see in the post anything about the size or scale of the project? If I'm doing a kitchen it can take me an entire day to sand just the doors....and yes that's after going through the widebelt. Then you have drawer boxes and cabinet parts.....lots and lots of sanding!

Now as to the question at hand.....headphones with either music, or books on tape as the others mentioned, for two reasons. First off your hearing, the sander may not be all that loud, but that monotonous tone for multiple hours, especially if you use a vac, is NOT good for your long term hearing. And second, and far down from the first in terms of importance, is to keep your mind busy while doing the drudgery;)

good luck,
JeffD

[Jim Neeley]

If I had to sand gobs of parts, I don't think it'd be an issue...like many men, I can turn my brain completely off for several hours at a time with no problem at all. It's like the joke that always comes up when a wife says "what are you thinking about", and the husband says "nothing". It really is...nothing. Space, no conscious thought.

They really *don't* understand that, do they David? <g>

[John TenEyck]

To enjoy sanding more I try to do less of it !

John

[ian maybury]

To David's - 'boring' in my experience tends to be more about how we relate to the task than an inherent characteristic of the task. More in fact a reflection of our own state of mind - of our urge to be doing something else while doing what we need to do. 'Split' mind if you like...

It's possible believe it or not to get 'into' seemingly boring tasks and have them become highly satisfying and enjoyable. The requirement is to immerse ourselves in the task, or put another way to cultivate the ability be comfortable with the relatively still mind that follows from doing something that doesn't require much thought. it's not something our societies tend much to cultivate, but it's in fact a critical learned skill. Opens the way to all sorts of interesting insight, makes room for it to come through and be heard....

This book is a classic on the topic of mindfulness: http://tiny.cc/st4dvw

ian

[Ben Hatcher]

The key to distracting yourself or just spacing out for a few hours is how you set up your work. If you set up your station so you grab from one side, do your operation and move to the other side, for example, you can groove your body into the motions and let your mind wander while the hours fly by.

[johnny means]

I dance while I sand. Preferably 80s music.

[Steve Rozmiarek]

I'm with Rod and David, skip sanding as much as possible and use a plane, but the tedious tasks exist elsewhere Dry fits come to mind for me. Personally, I relish those tedious jobs. I woodwork for fun, and as a release from reality, so a monotonous task just gives me the opportunity to let my mind wander without the normal boundaries that the job's stress creates. The last one that I did was pull all the nails that were left on the woodshops roof after the layers of shingles were removed. It was a good time, because I could just think about anything. Another thing that works for me at work, is to try to find little ways to make the job more efficient. Spreadsheets can be tedious, so I learn obscure excel functions that might make it all more efficient.

Yup, my wife is right, I'm weird.

[Mel Fulks]

All of these methods work. I do think its easier to apply them on jobs that were thought out well enough that you know that drudgery has been minimized. Unnecessary drudgery is torture.

[David Weaver]

It's possible believe it or not to get 'into' seemingly boring tasks and have them become highly satisfying and enjoyable.


I agree, I would hand rip, plane, mark and dimension every board if I could do it on every project. On the projects I want to build, I do exactly that. Hand tools only. I see often that doing routine work with hand tools is awful, boring, stupid, etc. But when they are properly set up and you have the grasp on technique as opposed to it just being a butt dragging on the floor level of exhaustion, it's really much much nicer to do that work by hand, think about the entire process, build it stick by stick and mark off of the progress.. see it all develop, etc, than it is to rush through the dimensioning.

[David Weaver]

They really *don't* understand that, do they David? <g>

I think it will never be communicated across the sexes, which is too bad. I go "nowhere" in my mind fairly often when I have the chance. The blank canvas happy place is such a nice place to be.

[John Coloccia]

Pretty much, I procrastinate, surf the web, etc. After a few days, I get depressed that I got nothing done in the shop, go upstairs and drink scotch. By 10:00pm, I decide that enough's enough, let's just get through it and I go downstairs and start working on what I need to work on. 2 minutes into it, I botch it all up and the part is trashed. The next morning, I toss out the trashed part and start building a new one. Problem solved until I get to the boring stuff again.

[Prashun Patel]

If sanding feels monotonous, I stop. Monotony breeds distraction and fatigue which (for me) leads to unsafe situations or errors.

[Michael W. Clark]

I second what David and Ian are saying, although they are likely much more skilled than I am. I recently built a doll shelf for my 5 year old. The doll is porcelain and special. I built the shelf from sassafrass using only hand tools. I did have to break down and sand it as I just could not satisfy myself with the finish on the endgrain.

More confidence in my use of handtools has changed my approach to building. I try for an exact fit with the machines, but I err on the side that it can "adjusted" with hand tools. This saves a lot of machine setup time and test cuts. Plus, the final fittng with hand tools saves considerably on sanding because I find it is more precise. (Probably just my lack of skill on the machine side)

I think with some parts, you are better off sanding at different stages in the build. You have more access to a panel before it is installed in the frame and therefore the sanding goes faster. If you are installing a face frame, and it has to mate with something on the cabinet, why sand it twice. Sand it all at once after it is installed on the cabinet.

If monotony is something like dealing with 50 spindles or slats on a piece of mission furniture, I just try not to do it. I like to look at it, but do not like the effort required to build, sand, stain, and finish all those areas.

Mike

[Erik Christensen]

small sanding jobs I don't mind - it's the large ones like cabinet case or drawer parts where there are dozens and dozens of pieces where it takes an hour or more to do a single grit; that is when it becomes akin to work. So I turn the music up, stretch and take a break between grits, & grab a fresh cold beer - after about 6 or 7 hours and 4 or 5 beers it is time for a nap. Works for me.

[ian maybury]

I'm very much in the early stages of serious woodworking Michael, although I have a lifetime of hands on engineering, fairly serious DIY woodworking, modelling and other craft work behind me.

On the topic, and pardon my philosophising. It's a much more fundamental and significant issue - the enjoyment or not of what we call 'boring work - than is commonly appreciated. It's actually a fundamental life skill.

In that the ability to be with work like that is a very significant part of achieving the ability to enjoy our work. Which in turn feeds on into satisfaction and the like. Which is what makes it worth while.

Nothing is 'boring' in the absolute sense anyway. One man's boring is another's interesting - or even exciting. What was fun today (remember your first try with a woodworking tool) can easily if we let it become boring tomorrow.

What isn't nice is genuine drudgery - that's work that's harder than what our level of fitness can handle, or more than can be handled in the available time without running into exhaustion. (it's funny how pretty much all kinds of work entail a degree of personal fitness of their own kind)

One of the worst killers of enjoyment is to get sucked into becoming objective or end point driven. The tunnel vision with which we can end up focusing on the objective/desired outcome (while commonly taught in management school) can devalue the actual work to get there (in our perception) so much that it leaves us in a state of continuous and chronic impatience - unable to get into what we are doing. Unable simple to 'be' with it.

Another issue can be the tendency to rush into doing before having clearly figured out the how and what's needed. It tends to pay off handsomely when doing stuff that's not routine to front end load the job. To put in lots more thinking time than might at first seem to be needed. (and then some more) That way you can make informed design choices, get the materials and the equipment lined up, you don't run into many unforeseen problems, and the risk of major boobs drops right down. Another way of looking at it is that once we start to 'do' or to implement stuff we rapidly lock down the degrees of freedom to approach a task in different ways - and as we all know it's very easy to head up a dead end.

I spent quite some years designing, building and flying competition RC model aircraft for national and international level aerobatic competition. It delivered some great results and experiences, but by stripping out the ability to simply enjoy what i was doing for its own sake it stopped being fun. Much better to forget about deadlines, and to instead stay with the moment - and concentrate on moving forward steadily as you work.

Who cares if something unexpected arises - just take it in your stride, adapt and proceed accordingly...

Try if you are working commercially to not get locked into deadlines that don't permit enough time. Self enquiry again shows that while we perceive customers to often be applying pressure that we're often our own hardest task masters. That it's our fear, or lack of confidence, or because we've got ourselves into an unbalanced and high pressure life situation (e.g. too big a home loan, too many commitments) that causes us to set targets that are too tough. It's not always evident until we find the courage to try it, but there frequently is the opportunity to build in the required space.... Problems tend to arise more when we don't deliver on an expectation we created, rather than because we don't satisfy the customer on delivery. i.e. it's a front end issue again.

That's where i (and more than a few others over the millennia) seem to have ended up anyway....

ian

[Phillip Gregory]

I just stop for a second and remind myself that I am not at work...problem solved :D

[Shawn Pixley]

iPod with podcasts. I love Car Talk and Wait Wait Don't Tell Me.

I do that as well. Same two shows & add This American Life.

[Shawn Pixley]

I try to take a zen attitude to the task - "be present in the moment." I find that this clears my head and allows me focus and perspective about issues. I am convinced that this helps cognition, problem solving and creativity.

[John Coloccia]

As a serious answer:

Set aside actual time to work in the shop. This is important. It's like when you're learning an instrument. A lot of people just think about learning an instrument and never get by that phase. If you want to really learn the instrument, it takes work, and you have to set aside time to put in that work.

When you really want to get something done, set aside the time. It doesn't matter if it's a lot of time. 1 minute. 5 minutes. 2 hours. Doesn't matter. Spend 10% of that time doing the tasks you don't want to do. Sweeping up...sanding...put away tools. Doesn't matter. Even better, set aside 5 minutes....literally just 5 minutes a day, to doing something that you don't want to do, but do it EVERY day. In the morning when your coffee is brewing, go into the workshop and do something terrible for 5 minutes.

I hope my customers never read this. I can't even begin to tell you how much I've gotten done just wearing a robe in my workshop. There are many mornings when I get up, put on some coffee, and then just walk down into the shop to get a little bit of work done. Sometimes I spend a minute or two (literally a minute or two) just putting away a couple of tools. Other mornings, I get involved in something and several hours later I'm covered in dust....my robe included, much to the chagrin of my wife.

Anyhow, there's no easy answer. I've found over the years, though, that the commitment to dedicate a certain amount of time each day is key. It can be one minute, or it can be 2 hours. Doesn't matter. Do SOMETHING every day, though. Even if all you do is go into the shop and put away just one tool, go down there and do it. Put that tool away. If you're a hobbyist and do that every day for a week, by the time the weekend comes you will have a cleaner shop to work in. Maybe sweep for a minute...just one. It's amazing how much you can clean in 60 seconds. Imagine if you just swept up for 60 seconds a day as opposed to merely THINKING about working in the shop for 5 hours a week.

Seriously, this is how you get'er done. You want it, you do it. Sand for 1 minute a day, but be into it. Sand the best you've ever sanded in your life. Don't skimp. It's only a minute....or 5....but do it perfectly. No rush. Rush rush rush...that's the American way. No rushing here....no shortcuts, but you don't have to dedicate your life. Do dedicate a solid couple of minutes here and there, though.

IF you do this, you will make tremendous progress over everyone else that gets to the overwhelmed stage of a project, with tools and dust everywhere, with a place for everything and everything out of it's place.

Sanding, for example, isn't a chore. It requires skill and patience. The fine details are what separate the craftsmen from the hacks. Anyone can rough shape something. Anyone can hack together a project. Craftsmanship isn't about doing it perfectly. It's about MAKING it perfect, in spite of the flaws that creep in here and there.

There's a subtle shift that happens in your thinking. One day the light goes on and you realize that all the rough material removal and shaping that you've done is merely preparation for the so-called tedious tasks, but those tedious tasks are last things that anyone will every see, and they should be the MOST perfect. Everything else is nothing but preparation for the moment when you take the last swipe with a scraper or a piece of sand paper and you say "Done!". OK, it's boring...so do it a minute at a time if you have to, but don't ever let it go because if you let it go for a week, you'll let it go for two...and then three....and then you'll wonder to yourself why you even bothered to start in the first place because you're been "sanding" for 3 weeks and still haven't gotten anywhere, but really you've just been procrastinating for 3 weeks and it's no wonder you haven't gotten anywhere.

I hope I don't come off as preachy. I don't mean to be. Most of us are just hobbyists, so this needs to be fun, but it's only ever fun for me when I make progress, and I don't make progress when I walk into a shop and I feel completely overwhelmed. I feel like that a lot, so when I do, I put away a couple of tools, I sweep up for a minute or two and then I look around and I feel like I actually got something done....and maybe I can get something else done, so I go for it and lo, I make progress.

Just some ramblings from someone who lives in his shop.

[Don Morris]

Keep your eye on the prize...the end.

[ian maybury]

As ever it's about balance though Don, and i'd argue that in our modern world we have a tendency to become target fixated.

I'm another John that gains a great deal from 'just doing something'. I tend to think quite a bit about what I do (in part because quite a lot of it is fairly new to me, and also because that's my way), and there's times when doing is a better clarifier than thinking. Once it goes hands on again the sense of stuckness evaporates - it reduces everything down to just identifying the next step.

Getting this right is mind you another balance to be worked on too...

ian

[Jim Matthews]

I'm wondering if this is a job for a co-op with a wide-belt sander.

On occasion, it's worth exchanging money for time.
This would appear to be one.