25-minute focus session for data work with distant traffic, when you cannot concentrate on anything else

1 Before you start

• Dim the screen slightly. Bright screens make long sessions harder than they need to be.
• If your mind is already racing, write down the three loudest thoughts before you begin.
• Decide now what you will do when the timer ends. Otherwise the decision will eat the first five minutes.
• Remember that motivation usually arrives after starting, not before.
• Go to the toilet first. It sounds trivial until you are mid-sentence.

2 While the timer runs

• When you catch yourself re-reading the same sentence, stop and write down what you were looking for.
• When you notice you have drifted, do not restart the block. Just come back and carry on counting from where the timer is.
• When the timer feels too long, look at it less. The clock is not the task.
• Notice whether you are working or performing work. They look similar from the outside.

3 When it ends

• Take the break away from the screen, even if it is just the other side of the room.
• Note what you actually got done, not what you meant to get done.
• Resist the urge to review the work straight away. Come back to it later with fresh eyes.

4What to put on

distant traffic — A low continuous wash from a road you are not on. Familiar and easy to stop hearing.