This is why I am so anal about my schedule:

Not to be dramatic, but: When I got laid off from DreamWorks, I thought that I had lost everything. I was just going to stay there forever, while building my own creative career on the side. When I was laid off, that plan was ruined. I lost momentum completely. I limped to the finish line of my CS master's. I did not publish any papers. My final project had an error in the physics equations. I got a new job that was not animation and despite my love for coding, I just could not get my heart into it and I wasn't sure why. For a long time, I went through the motions to pay the bills and that was it. I was not consistent at practicing art, 2D or 3D, and my skills were severely lagging behind. I was not able to move to California as planned. I was not submitting to writing group. In fact, the only thing I was really consistent at was exercise. 

Finally I woke up. I had to build something non-negotiable via daily automatic practice blocks that were just as important and unskippable as work and exercise. So I implemented that. It doesn't matter if I have taxes to do, or someone is visiting soon, or if the weather's nice, or if it's messy in my apartment. Nothing can touch those blocks. They're a second job. They simply have to happen and there is no other option. 

I'll build skills and make projects regardless of whether or not anyone cares. It's something that a company can't take away. 

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