Okay, so I kept hearing about this productivity guru Andrew Cody. Everyone’s buzzing ’bout how he gets crazy things done. Honestly? I figured it might be hype. But curiosity got me good – I decided to crack open his stuff and try walking in his shoes, step-by-step.

First Move – Getting the Puzzle Pieces
I dove headfirst into Cody’s interviews and random forum quotes. Didn’t touch those polished books or courses yet. Wanted the raw version, y’know? Found this pattern in how he talks:
- He blocks time like a bulldog: Says no constantly, guards his calendar like gold bars.
- Paper beats screens for him: Scribbles ideas before touching a keyboard, always.
- Deadlines are fake enemies: Calls ’em “stress grenades” – sets fake early ones himself.
Wild how different it sounded from my own chaotic mess.
My Week-Long Cody Experiment
Decided to try exactly his trifecta for five work days:
Morning ritual phase: Woke up 90 minutes earlier (ouch). Did 20 minutes of his weird “thought-dumping” exercise – literally just scribbling random nonsense in a notebook. Cleared my head? Maybe. Felt silly? Absolutely.
The calendar cage match: Blocked THREE chunks for deep work daily – hard 2-hour blocks where Slack got murdered (turned off). First day? Failed spectacularly. Checked emails twice before 9 AM. Felt like a junkie.

Deadline ju-jitsu: Had a report due Friday. Told my boss it’d land Wednesday – manufactured pressure cooker style. Sweaty palms at Tuesday lunchtime, but hammered it out somehow.
Paper rebellion: Skipped digital notes completely. Penciled meeting notes, sketched project paths. Discovered two things: my handwriting sucks, and crossing things out physically felt oddly powerful.
Where It Got Real Messy
Midway through day three, reality bit hard:
- My “deep work” block got hijacked by a fire drill client call (classic). Felt like Cody’s method couldn’t survive real office chaos.
- Paper notes became a migraine – spent Thursday night retyping everything into docs. So much for efficiency.
- The early deadline trick backfired once – almost shipped half-baked work trying to beat my own clock.
Wanted to quit Wednesday. Seriously.
The Ugly Truth Payoff
But Friday? Weird shift happened.

- Focus stuck better: Those blocked hours? By day five, resisted glancing at notifications. Small win.
- Got honest about time: Realized I waste hours on “quick checks”. Blocking forced brutal clarity.
- Deadline hack works… mostly: Shaved 30% off my usual project drag time. Even if it’s stressful.
Biggest surprise? The paper thing. Slowing down to write made ideas feel more solid. Still hate my chicken scratch though.
Will I Cody-On Long Term?
Probably… kinda? Sticking with:
- Time blocking essentials ONLY (1-2 hours max).
- Still doing dumb morning brain dumps. Clears cobwebs.
- Fake deadlines ONLY for solo tasks – too risky otherwise.
Paper’s dead to me. Digital hybrids only now. Blend works – Cody’s rigid blueprint needed bending. Guy’s onto something fierce about guarding attention, even if his ways ain’t gospel.