90-minute focus session for problem solving with plain quiet, if you are sceptical about all of this

1 Before you start

• Have a piece of paper beside you for the thoughts that will try to interrupt.
• Promise yourself you will not check anything until the timer ends, including "just quickly".
• Decide what counts as done for this block. "Two pages" is better than "make progress".
• Remember that motivation usually arrives after starting, not before.
• Get water now, so you do not have to get up in fifteen minutes.

2 While the timer runs

• Notice the moment your hand moves toward your phone. That moment is the whole skill.
• If the task suddenly feels impossible, make it smaller rather than stopping. One paragraph. One function. One row.
• If a thought will not leave, give it one line on the page and return to the task.
• When you get an idea for something else, park it. Do not follow it.

3 When it ends

• Roll your shoulders and your neck before the next block.
• Decide whether the next block is the same task or a different one. Do not drift into it.
• Resist the urge to review the work straight away. Come back to it later with fresh eyes.

4What to put on

plain quiet — No added sound at all. If you have a quiet room, that is usually better than any recording of one.