Balancing a 60-Hour Work Week with Indie Game Development

When I finally made the decision I was going to make and release a game, I looked at my schedule and it seemed impossible. I work 60+ hours a week, and I also have responsibilities to my family and my health.

Find the small increments of time you can dedicate to creating your game and dedicate it. Finding the little 15-30 minutes before, during, and after your other responsibilities will eventually add up to accomplishing your goal. Forgive yourself when your schedule truly does not allow it.

Start Small

To get started, 15 minutes will do. My days start at 5 am and ends around midnight. At first, it seemed impossible to find any time within the day, but instead of giving up, I decided to look critically at each hour of the day.

There is a bit of driving I do which round trip takes about 30 minutes (15 minutes each way). With those fifteen minutes, I started listening to YouTube videos and tutorials. Sometimes after the first 15 minutes, I realize that the video won't teach me anything so I wouldn't continue watching it. Other times I spend several trips to go through the entire video.

Even if you don't grasp 100% of what the video teaches while just listening, it will still allow you to speed through (watch at 1.5x speed) the tutorial when it finally comes time to practice.

Be critical of the content you choose

When choosing something to watch or listen to, be sure to consider why you are consuming it.

Watching something for entertainment purposes is fine, but when you are trying to accomplish a goal, you cannot only watch entertainment. For example, I could watch Indie Game The Movie every day, but I know I won't learn anything from it.

Choose topics relating to what you are trying to accomplish and pay attention to run time, view count (if on a platform that shows it), reviews, and comments. YouTube videos have timestamps, either in the description or in the comments, which you could use to quickly get the parts you need. It's ok if you only need to watch a small portion of a video.

Test Small Ideas

With time so limited, I wasn't learning anything by attempting large projects or by following long series. What worked for me was creating small projects that I would eventually use as notes for my one main project. For example, when I needed to know how to create a particle engine, I watched a basic tutorial on how particles work. Then I worked on creating a particle engine that just generated one particle. Eventually, this turned into the particle engine I use today.

Small projects allow you to focus on completion and even if you can't finish them in one 15-30 minute session, it is easier to remember all parts and where you left off.

Sketch Thumbnails Instead of Full Artwork

Games require a lot of artwork and artwork takes me a lot of time. When learning animations and drawing, I came across a tip to draw thumbnails. Thumbnails are small images. The size restriction allows you to focus on the main ideas and worry about the details later.

Carry a Notebook

For a while, I was against carrying a paper notebook. Especially because I always carried my phone and a lot of times had my laptop. Now I find real value in being able to open a paper notebook and just start scribbling ideas or sketches. Notebooks, pens, and pencils are cheap. For the way I take notes, it is more convenient than opening an app or laptop. Sometimes partway through writing a note, I want to draw a diagram or sketch, and instead of having to search through a toolbar, wait for the lag to catch up, or hope I remembered to charge, I can just scribble it in.

Forgive Yourself

If, like me, you made the decision later in life to pursue a time-consuming goal, you probably have a full-time job and just as many responsibilities. It's ok if from time to time your schedule doesn't allow it.

One of my free time opportunities is the 30-minute break after walking the dogs in the morning and before I start my first job. If the dogs decide to take their time, then it cuts directly into my game development time. That is ok. Realize when you honestly can't work on it and don't stress about it. At the same time, don't let missing a session snowball into stopping altogether. Practice discipline, review your time critically, and forgive yourself.