Focus session · decluttering · 25 min

A 25-minute block for decluttering, with brown noise, when you have been putting it off

A single 25-minute block for decluttering — one surface at a time.

25:00

Press start. The timer keeps time so you do not have to look at a clock.

Unclench your jaw. You were probably holding it without noticing. You have been putting this off. Starting is the only step that matters. Keep it simple: breath in, breath out, notice.

1 Before you start

  • Write down the one thing you are going to do, in a single sentence, before you start.
  • Give yourself permission to stop when the timer ends, even mid-sentence.
  • Close the door, or put headphones on, whichever signals "working" to the people around you.
  • 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 whether you are working or performing work. They look similar from the outside.
  • It is fine to stare at the wall for a minute. That is often where the answer is.
  • The first urge to stop usually arrives early. Sit through it once and the second one is quieter.
  • When the timer feels too long, look at it less. The clock is not the task.

3 When it ends

  • Write down the question you could not answer, so it has somewhere to live.
  • Leave the desk tidier than you found it. Two minutes now saves ten later.
  • Roll your shoulders and your neck before the next block.

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.

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