The layman is probably curious to know how the daily routine of great people evolved. To achieve outstanding success, did they have to sacrifice something? For example, sleep or time to solve domestic or financial problems. You can find out about this from the book of Mason Curry, who collected information about the life of 161 celebrities, including Leo Tolstoy and George Sand, Picasso and Haruki Murakami.
"The regime of genius. The daily routine of great people"
The title of the book speaks for itself. This is the debut work of the American author, who managed to work as an editor in a number of publications: The New York Times, Metropolis, Print, Slate. A graduate of the University of North Carolina, he is today known as the author of five works and a successful blogger. “Genius Mode” is his most popular book published in Russian.
The author living in Brooklyn analyzed the life of geniuses in the fields of literature (53%), music (12%), visual arts (11%), as well as prominent architects, scientists, choreographers and philosophers. The main conclusion is that the great people had a daily routine. It was purely individual: some worked at night, others in the early morning. Creative personalities set themselves up for work differently. Someone needed fresh air for inspiration, and someone needed strong drinks. But there was no talk of any spontaneity.
About women
How many representatives of the beautiful half got into the book? The daily routine of great people described by the author concerns 26 outstanding women, which is 16%. Not all surnames are familiar to the Russian layman, but everyone knows about two of them absolutely for sure. We are talking about the writers George Sand and Agatha Christie. Surely many people also know Tony Morrison, now a 88-year-old novelist, Nobel Prize winner and author of an amazing book called Beloved.
It is curious that most celebrities were not married, devoting creativity to most of their lives. Those who were married had to make time to do what they loved. They raised children, fussed around the household, and even had a permanent job. Tony Morrison, for example, taught at the university, worked at a publishing house, and one raised two sons. Pondering works took place at home, after which, late in the evening, she sat down at the table to write down everything that was born in her head during the day.
Mozart
Who else can be read in the book about the regime of the day of great people? About those who worked several centuries ago, for example, about Mozart (photo is presented in the article). The ingenious composer of the XVIII century. perceived as a spoiled child of fate, to whom writing was given without any effort.
However, often he had to literally be torn between visits to influential patrons, concerts and lessons that he gave for the sake of earning. During his stay in Vienna (1781) he described his day like this: early rise (by six the composer was already combed); composing music; from 9:00 to lunch - lessons; visits; concerts meeting with Constance Weber, at that time the bride of Mozart; composing music, which lasted until one in the morning. And in the early morning everything started all over again.
Beethoven
All who have achieved outstanding success are workaholics. And what else distinguishes the day regime of great people? Curry discovered that many of the creative personalities preferred walking. Seren Kierkegaard, a famous Danish philosopher of the 19th century, was so inspired during his travels that he rushed to the desktop, forgetting to take off his hat or put on a cane. Beethoven also belonged to walkers, whose photo is presented a little higher. The composer always carried a pencil with a notebook in case inspiration visited him.
He worked in the morning, getting up at dawn. Before lunch, I went out for a walk several times to keep working until 2-3 o'clock in the afternoon. After the meal, the composer went to explore the surroundings, walking until the evening. At the same time, he went into a tavern where he read, found out the news, and spent time in the company of friends. Sometimes he visited the theater, but preferred to go to bed at 21:00. At the same time, in the evening, the composer was practically not involved in writing.
Sigmund Freud
An indicative description of the day schedule of great people can be the day regime of the most famous psychoanalyst of the XIX-XX centuries. Like everyone, he was a workaholic. His morning began at seven o’clock. The daily ritual was a light breakfast and a meeting with the barber. Freud carefully looked after his beard. The main meal took place at one o'clock in the afternoon. Until this time, the psychologist received patients.
After lunch, an energetic walk awaited him, visiting the publisher, buying cigars, which he loved very much. From 15:00 to 21:00 he again met with patients, after which he spent some time with his family. Freud worked on editing the magazine and writing articles late in the evening, closing in his office. His working day ended at one in the morning.
Victor Hugo
Many of the creative people were friends with the sport. The famous writer of the XIX century. - superfluous confirmation of this. It is known that he spent 15 years in exile on the island of Guernsey. Describing the regime of the day of great people, Mason Curry analyzes precisely this period of Victor Hugo's life.
The writer got up at dawn, and after drinking two raw eggs, he did the work. Before lunch, he was interrupted only in order to dousing with cold water, which ordinary passers-by could observe, because Hugo did it on the roof of the house. Lunch time passed at the reception, so in those days it was accepted. But after the meal followed a two-hour walk or a long charge on the beach, swimming. In the evening, the writer again sat down at his desk, but only in order to answer letters.
Tchaikovsky: the ability to highlight the important
The daily routine of great people demonstrates the ability to see the line between what is important and secondary. For the latter, they set aside the most unproductive time. This feature is especially well seen on the example of P.I. Tchaikovsky. The famous composer, who spent the rest of his days under Klin, adhered to a strict schedule. He, like many, got up quite early - up to eight hours. At 9:30 I already started to work, but at first I didn’t do my favorite job - I read the proofreading or reviewed my personal correspondence. Before embarking on creativity, he freed himself from anything that might distract him.
Mandatory for him were afternoon two-hour walks. He considered them very important, because he took care of his health. Before dinner, the composer again went for a walk. By the way, it was at this time that new ideas came to him.
To summarize
We offer you another example presented in the picture a little higher. Honore de Balzac for productive work used another way to restore strength - a short day's sleep.
It should be recognized that Mason Curry did a gigantic job to debunk the myth that creative personalities who succeeded acted spontaneously, being people "out of this world." We were convinced that their work was organized, they maximally concentrated on their activities, devoting considerable time to it.
Some even timed their day. Hemingway, for example, scrupulously counted working hours. He worked since five in the morning, and he worked standing up, setting himself the task of writing at least 700-800 words daily. Burres Skinner, the ideologist of behaviorism, also kept a schedule of his activities. While writing articles, he used a timer.
For greater productivity, creative people took care of their physical activity, took walks, went in for sports, not neglecting rest. However, some were not deprived of bad habits, which it was difficult for them to give up. Freud, for example, smoked a lot, and Balzac could not do without coffee.
The daily routine of great people testifies: for the pursuit of what they loved, many limited their social ties. This characterizes Simone de Beauvoir, a French writer and ideologist of feminism. But there are opposite examples. Communication was important for Picasso's inspiration, so he gladly received guests. But he did this no more than once a week.