25-minute focus session for language practice with birds at dawn, when you have been meaning to start

1 Before you start

• Go to the toilet first. It sounds trivial until you are mid-sentence.
• Remember that motivation usually arrives after starting, not before.
• Make sure your chair is at a height where your feet are flat on the floor.
• If your mind is already racing, write down the three loudest thoughts before you begin.
• Decide what counts as done for this block. "Two pages" is better than "make progress".

2 While the timer runs

• When you catch yourself re-reading the same sentence, stop and write down what you were looking for.
• If the task suddenly feels impossible, make it smaller rather than stopping. One paragraph. One function. One row.
• Notice whether you are working or performing work. They look similar from the outside.
• If a thought will not leave, give it one line on the page and return to the task.

3 When it ends

• Put the notes you made where you will find them next time.
• Look out of a window for thirty seconds. Your eyes have been at one distance for a while.
• Have a drink of water before you check anything.

4What to put on

birds at dawn — Bright but not sharp. Better for early sessions than for late ones.