45-minute focus session for planning with vinyl crackle, when you have just finished work

1 Before you start

• Write down the one thing you are going to do, in a single sentence, before you start.
• 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.
• Remember that motivation usually arrives after starting, not before.
• Go to the toilet first. It sounds trivial until you are mid-sentence.

2 While the timer runs

• When you have drifted for the fifth time, that is still four returns. Keep going.
• When the timer feels too long, look at it less. The clock is not the task.
• When you get an idea for something else, park it. Do not follow it.
• If you are stuck, say the problem out loud. It changes what you can see.

3 When it ends

• Leave the file open if you are coming back. Closing it makes restarting harder.
• Write down the question you could not answer, so it has somewhere to live.
• Write one line about where to start next time. Future you will be grateful.

4What to put on

vinyl crackle — A thin layer of surface noise over nothing much. Just enough texture to stop the room feeling empty.