45-minute focus block for writing — a washing machine, when you are somewhere noisy

1 Before you start

• Turn off notifications for the next block, not just to silent.
• Choose one question to answer in this block, rather than a whole subject to cover.
• Clear the surface in front of you down to the thing you are working on.
• Tell yourself the goal is time spent, not output produced.
• Make sure your chair is at a height where your feet are flat on the floor.

2 While the timer runs

• When you get an idea for something else, park it. Do not follow it.
• The first urge to stop usually arrives early. Sit through it once and the second one is quieter.
• When you catch yourself re-reading the same sentence, stop and write down what you were looking for.
• When you finish a piece, pause for three seconds before starting the next. It keeps the pace honest.

3 When it ends

• Take the break away from the screen, even if it is just the other side of the room.
• Write down the question you could not answer, so it has somewhere to live.
• Leave the file open if you are coming back. Closing it makes restarting harder.

4What to put on

a washing machine — Domestic, mechanical, and oddly steadying. The sound of something else being dealt with.