45-minute planning session with birds at dawn and a timer, when you have just finished work

1 Before you start

• Close every tab that is not needed for this one task. Not minimised — closed.
• Decide that today's session does not have to be good. It has to happen.
• Clear the surface in front of you down to the thing you are working on.
• Remind yourself that you are allowed to produce something mediocre in the first pass.
• Set the timer where you can see it, or where you can deliberately not see it.

2 While the timer runs

• If your attention keeps sliding, shorten the next block rather than abandoning this one.
• 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.
• Notice the moment your hand moves toward your phone. That moment is the whole skill.

3 When it ends

• Put the notes you made where you will find them next time.
• Roll your shoulders and your neck before the next block.
• If it went badly, note one thing that worked anyway. There is usually one.

4What to put on

birds at dawn — Bright but not sharp. Better for early sessions than for late ones.