90-minute focus session for studying with forest at dusk, when you are not in the mood

1 Before you start

• Have a piece of paper beside you for the thoughts that will try to interrupt.
• Let go of the version of this task you imagined doing perfectly.
• 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.
• Put the thing you keep reaching for out of arm's reach.

2 While the timer runs

• If you feel restless, change your posture rather than your task.
• It is fine to stare at the wall for a minute. That is often where the answer is.
• If the task suddenly feels impossible, make it smaller rather than stopping. One paragraph. One function. One row.
• If you are suddenly sleepy, stand up for ten seconds and sit back down.

3 When it ends

• Write down the question you could not answer, so it has somewhere to live.
• Stand up and move for at least two minutes. The break is part of the method, not a reward.
• Roll your shoulders and your neck before the next block.

4What to put on

forest at dusk — Birds settling, leaves moving, nothing sudden. It works because it sounds like a place you can safely ignore.