Focus session · writing · 90 min
90-minute focus session for writing with distant traffic, before something difficult
90 minutes on writing — the first draft, not the good version. One full ultradian cycle, for work that needs a long runway.
90:00
Press start. The timer keeps time so you do not have to look at a clock.
Feel your ribs move. That is all the machinery you need to pay attention to right now. It works best in the hour before something difficult. No preamble. We start with the body.
1 Before you start
- Put your phone in another room, or in a drawer you cannot reach without standing up.
- Lower the bar until starting feels almost silly, then start.
- Put the thing you keep reaching for out of arm's reach.
- Accept that the first five minutes will feel like wading. Wading counts.
- Dim the screen slightly. Bright screens make long sessions harder than they need to be.
2 While the timer runs
- Notice the moment your hand moves toward your phone. That moment is the whole skill.
- Notice whether you are working or performing work. They look similar from the outside.
- If you start tidying your desk, that is avoidance. Sit back down.
- If you are suddenly sleepy, stand up for ten seconds and sit back down.
3 When it ends
- Resist the urge to review the work straight away. Come back to it later with fresh eyes.
- Stand up and move for at least two minutes. The break is part of the method, not a reward.
- Write down the question you could not answer, so it has somewhere to live.
4What to put on
distant traffic — A low continuous wash from a road you are not on. Familiar and easy to stop hearing.
This page is a tool, not a course. Nothing is tracked, nothing is saved, and nobody is told whether you finished.