90-minute language practice session with brown noise and a timer, when you have tried everything else

1 Before you start

• Make sure your chair is at a height where your feet are flat on the floor.
• If you are dreading it, make the first action physical: open the file, sharpen the pencil.
• Put your phone in another room, or in a drawer you cannot reach without standing up.
• Promise yourself you will not check anything until the timer ends, including "just quickly".
• Clear the surface in front of you down to the thing you are working on.

2 While the timer runs

• If you are bored, the boredom is usually the last thing before something clicks.
• When you get an idea for something else, park it. Do not follow it.
• If you are suddenly sleepy, stand up for ten seconds and sit back down.
• If the task suddenly feels impossible, make it smaller rather than stopping. One paragraph. One function. One row.

3 When it ends

• Have a drink of water before you check anything.
• Put the notes you made where you will find them next time.
• Note what you actually got done, not what you meant to get done.

4What to put on

brown noise — Lower and softer than white noise, closer to a waterfall heard from a distance. Good if white noise feels too hissy.