A 25-minute block for problem solving, with a washing machine, when you have more time than usual

1 Before you start

• Close every tab that is not needed for this one task. Not minimised — closed.
• Lower the bar until starting feels almost silly, then start.
• Decide now what you will do when the timer ends. Otherwise the decision will eat the first five minutes.
• Expect to want to stop at about the eight-minute mark. That is normal and it passes.
• Put the thing you keep reaching for out of arm's reach.

2 While the timer runs

• If you start tidying your desk, that is avoidance. Sit back down.
• If nothing is working, write badly on purpose for two minutes.
• If you feel the urge to check something, write it on the paper beside you and keep going. Deal with the list afterwards.
• It is fine to stare at the wall for a minute. That is often where the answer is.

3 When it ends

• Decide whether the next block is the same task or a different one. Do not drift into it.
• If it went badly, note one thing that worked anyway. There is usually one.
• Write one line about where to start next time. Future you will be grateful.

4What to put on

a washing machine — Domestic, mechanical, and oddly steadying. The sound of something else being dealt with.