45-minute focus block for problem solving — a fan or air conditioner, if you are sceptical about all of this

1 Before you start

• Make sure your chair is at a height where your feet are flat on the floor.
• Decide in advance that a bad sentence is still progress.
• Dim the screen slightly. Bright screens make long sessions harder than they need to be.
• Remember that motivation usually arrives after starting, not before.
• Get water now, so you do not have to get up in fifteen minutes.

2 While the timer runs

• If you are bored, the boredom is usually the last thing before something clicks.
• When the timer feels too long, look at it less. The clock is not the task.
• If you feel restless, change your posture rather than your task.
• When you catch yourself re-reading the same sentence, stop and write down what you were looking for.

3 When it ends

• Leave the file open if you are coming back. Closing it makes restarting harder.
• Note what you actually got done, not what you meant to get done.
• Have a drink of water before you check anything.

4What to put on

a fan or air conditioner — A constant mechanical hum with no variation. The lack of change is the point — nothing in it asks for your attention.