I am interested in the paper on the topic; if you drop what you have into a google doc and PM me the link I will add my thoughts. (I have similar troubles with old/new projects)
Sorry, my comment was ambiguous—I am not writing a paper on this subject but am struggling with finishing old projects on other topics, while being seduced by novelty. Writing up my thoughts on old/new projects would make the problem worse as this is well outside the field I need to make progress in to keep a desk over my head.
a suggestion: If you consider the salience of completion more strongly, you might be able to motivate yourself to complete a half-done project sooner than a zero-done project.
Obviously the draw of the new-shiny project is significant and likely to be more interesting because it is novel. The finishing reward is further away though.
Consider: Making a list of what is left to do on this existing project. You might be suffering from a difficulty in knowing what to do next (which masks itself in akrasia and new shiny project feelings). At some point after doing all the obviously easy parts to the project we are left with the not-obviously easy parts (if all the parts were obvious and easy we would be done with the task).
I am interested in the paper on the topic; if you drop what you have into a google doc and PM me the link I will add my thoughts. (I have similar troubles with old/new projects)
Sorry, my comment was ambiguous—I am not writing a paper on this subject but am struggling with finishing old projects on other topics, while being seduced by novelty. Writing up my thoughts on old/new projects would make the problem worse as this is well outside the field I need to make progress in to keep a desk over my head.
a suggestion: If you consider the salience of completion more strongly, you might be able to motivate yourself to complete a half-done project sooner than a zero-done project.
Obviously the draw of the new-shiny project is significant and likely to be more interesting because it is novel. The finishing reward is further away though.
Consider: Making a list of what is left to do on this existing project. You might be suffering from a difficulty in knowing what to do next (which masks itself in akrasia and new shiny project feelings). At some point after doing all the obviously easy parts to the project we are left with the not-obviously easy parts (if all the parts were obvious and easy we would be done with the task).