Focus session · decluttering · 90 min
90-minute focus session for decluttering with a stream, when you feel restless rather than tired
90 minutes on decluttering — one surface at a time. One full ultradian cycle, for work that needs a long runway.
Press start. The timer keeps time so you do not have to look at a clock.
Begin with the simple fact that you got here. That already happened. Restless is different from tired, and it needs a different approach. We'll be efficient and then you can get on with your day.
1 Before you start
- Clear the surface in front of you down to the thing you are working on.
- Promise yourself you will not check anything until the timer ends, including "just quickly".
- Have a piece of paper beside you for the thoughts that will try to interrupt.
- Decide in advance that a bad sentence is still progress.
- Put your phone in another room, or in a drawer you cannot reach without standing up.
2 While the timer runs
- When you catch yourself re-reading the same sentence, stop and write down what you were looking for.
- When you notice you have drifted, do not restart the block. Just come back and carry on counting from where the timer is.
- When you get an idea for something else, park it. Do not follow it.
- 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.
- Have a drink of water before you check anything.
- Write one line about where to start next time. Future you will be grateful.
4What to put on
a stream — Running water with small variation. Softer than rain and less repetitive than a fan.
This page is a tool, not a course. Nothing is tracked, nothing is saved, and nobody is told whether you finished.
If this block does not fit, try 50-minute focus block for problem solving — café murmur, when you have more time than usual, A 25-minute block for thesis writing, with a stream, when you are waiting for something or Focus session for practising an instrument: 90 minutes, birds at dawn, if you are doing this in the middle of the day.