External pressures help. I&#x27;ve been trying to learn more about data science through MOOCs but starting a Masters degree is what really forces me to spend my time engaging with it rather than procrastinating. It&#x27;s an extreme case but you can create external pressure for most things. For example if you&#x27;re trying to stop procrastinating on a side project, set up a demo with someone in 2 weeks&#x27; time and you&#x27;ll suddenly find it easier to focus.<p>YMMV of course, but it works for me!