25-minute planning session with plain quiet and a timer, when you want to be left alone

1 Before you start

• Write down the one thing you are going to do, in a single sentence, before you start.
• Plan to leave the last two minutes for writing down where to pick up next time.
• Take one slow breath before you press start, so the session has a beginning.
• Promise yourself you will not check anything until the timer ends, including "just quickly".
• Close every tab that is not needed for this one task. Not minimised — closed.

2 While the timer runs

• When you get an idea for something else, park it. Do not follow it.
• When you have drifted for the fifth time, that is still four returns. Keep going.
• If you are stuck, say the problem out loud. It changes what you can see.
• Notice whether you are working or performing work. They look similar from the outside.

3 When it ends

• Stand up and move for at least two minutes. The break is part of the method, not a reward.
• Leave the desk tidier than you found it. Two minutes now saves ten later.
• Take the break away from the screen, even if it is just the other side of the room.

4What to put on

plain quiet — No added sound at all. If you have a quiet room, that is usually better than any recording of one.