A 50-minute block for coding, with brown noise, when you have been putting it off

1 Before you start

• Dim the screen slightly. Bright screens make long sessions harder than they need to be.
• Plan to leave the last two minutes for writing down where to pick up next time.
• Make sure your chair is at a height where your feet are flat on the floor.
• Choose one question to answer in this block, rather than a whole subject to cover.
• Take one slow breath before you press start, so the session has a beginning.

2 While the timer runs

• If you start tidying your desk, that is avoidance. Sit back down.
• Notice whether you are working or performing work. They look similar from the outside.
• If a thought will not leave, give it one line on the page and return to the task.
• If you are stuck, say the problem out loud. It changes what you can see.

3 When it ends

• Have a drink of water before you check anything.
• Say the session is finished, out loud if you can. It marks the boundary.
• Leave the file open if you are coming back. Closing it makes restarting harder.

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.