90-minute coding session with café murmur and a timer, if you are sceptical about all of this

1 Before you start

• Write down the one thing you are going to do, in a single sentence, before you start.
• Accept that the first five minutes will feel like wading. Wading counts.
• Get water now, so you do not have to get up in fifteen minutes.
• Tell yourself the goal is time spent, not output produced.
• Turn off notifications for the next block, not just to silent.

2 While the timer runs

• If you are suddenly sleepy, stand up for ten seconds and sit back down.
• When you notice you have drifted, do not restart the block. Just come back and carry on counting from where the timer is.
• If a thought will not leave, give it one line on the page and return to the task.
• When you have drifted for the fifth time, that is still four returns. Keep going.

3 When it ends

• Put the notes you made where you will find them next time.
• Stand up and move for at least two minutes. The break is part of the method, not a reward.
• Take the break away from the screen, even if it is just the other side of the room.

4What to put on

café murmur — The blur of other people talking, with none of the words close enough to follow. Some people concentrate better with a low level of company.