Haruki Murakami Quotes

I try to keep a regular work schedule.

I like to be organized, I like to stick to my schedule. That's how I stay focused.

I sit down religiously every morning, I sit down for eight hours every day - and the sitting down is all.

If we let ourselves, we shall always be waiting for some distraction or other to end before we can really get down to our work.

I just think there are enough hours in the day. If you just focus and dedicate yourself and approach each task as it presents itself, you can accomplish a lot.

I can handle a lot of work. I've always been able to. I'm a very focused individual. I come to my studio at about 7:30 in the morning and exit almost 5:00 P.M. In that time, those eight or nine hours, it's kind of laser focus on whatever I'm working on. There aren't really any distractions or anything.

I'm a writer, not a professional runner. It's fun and it helps me write. I need powerful concentration.

When you find yourself on the Internet when you're supposed to be writing, you've already lost. It's even beyond procrastination when you end up on the Internet.

When I was bringing up a child, I taught myself to write in very short, concentrated bursts. If I had a weekend, or a week, I'd do unbelievable amounts of work.

I like to try to do a little work before I do anything in the morning, even if it's a paragraph.

I can do a book in three months if I spend all day, seven days a week at it and, in fact, I work better that way.

If I didn't have my little schedule book, I wouldn't get out of bed in the morning.

I would teach from nine to four, sleep an hour, and write from six until midnight, night after night.

I often write either really early in the morning, or really late at night.

I like to work and it kind of keeps me in line, which is very good because I need that structure.

I get pretty focused when I start working on something. And I drink a lot of water, way more than most people.

I want to concentrate on work and won't do anything to divert my concentration.

No matter what your job is, you know that you need to have a routine, that you need to be disciplined, you need to work.

I like having a studio to go to. It's like having a job.

When I do something, I do it for the specified amount of time, and then I do something else.

I tend to have a hard time working on pieces long before they're due. That's why I think the fact that I write a column is really good for me - the column has to be done, and there's no getting around it.

I think just getting up and getting to the desk is a big thing. If you can do that, you're in the zone because there're so many distractions that can stop you. From my bedroom to my office isn't really that far, but I have to go via the kitchen and there's so many things that can stop me and interrupt me.

What sets disciplined people apart? - The capacity to get past distractions. Focus on the task at hand.

I am a highly disciplined person. I get up at seven every morning and, still in my pajamas, sit down at my desk where my checkered ring binders and my fountain pen are ready for use. I try to write two pages every day.

I unplug the phone and close the door and just stick with it. I don't ever go out for lunch and I don't take vacations. I like to be awake when no one else is: either just before dawn in the morning or late, late at night. Silence helps.