A 50-minute block for editing, with a fireplace, when you want something simple

1 Before you start

• Close every tab that is not needed for this one task. Not minimised — closed.
• Decide that today's session does not have to be good. It has to happen.
• Get water now, so you do not have to get up in fifteen minutes.
• Let go of the version of this task you imagined doing perfectly.
• Go to the toilet first. It sounds trivial until you are mid-sentence.

2 While the timer runs

• Notice whether you are working or performing work. They look similar from the outside.
• If the task suddenly feels impossible, make it smaller rather than stopping. One paragraph. One function. One row.
• It is fine to stare at the wall for a minute. That is often where the answer is.
• When you finish a piece, pause for three seconds before starting the next. It keeps the pace honest.

3 When it ends

• Take the break away from the screen, even if it is just the other side of the room.
• Decide whether the next block is the same task or a different one. Do not drift into it.
• Leave the file open if you are coming back. Closing it makes restarting harder.

4What to put on

a fireplace — Crackles and a low roar underneath. Warm, irregular, and undemanding.