25-minute writing session with distant thunder and a timer, when you need to stop thinking about work

1 Before you start

• Set the timer where you can see it, or where you can deliberately not see it.
• Remind yourself that you are allowed to produce something mediocre in the first pass.
• Make sure your chair is at a height where your feet are flat on the floor.
• Tell yourself the goal is time spent, not output produced.
• Put your phone in another room, or in a drawer you cannot reach without standing up.

2 While the timer runs

• If you feel restless, change your posture rather than your task.
• When you finish a piece, pause for three seconds before starting the next. It keeps the pace honest.
• If nothing is working, write badly on purpose for two minutes.
• When you catch yourself re-reading the same sentence, stop and write down what you were looking for.

3 When it ends

• Stand up and move for at least two minutes. The break is part of the method, not a reward.
• Decide whether the next block is the same task or a different one. Do not drift into it.
• Leave the desk tidier than you found it. Two minutes now saves ten later.

4What to put on

distant thunder — Low rumbles with long gaps. Suits people who find sudden noises more distracting than constant ones.