A 50-minute block for exam revision, with a washing machine, if you are sceptical about all of this

1 Before you start

• Dim the screen slightly. Bright screens make long sessions harder than they need to be.
• Decide what you will do if you get stuck: write the problem out, then move on.
• Decide now what you will do when the timer ends. Otherwise the decision will eat the first five minutes.
• Let go of the version of this task you imagined doing perfectly.
• Turn off notifications for the next block, not just to silent.

2 While the timer runs

• Notice whether you are working or performing work. They look similar from the outside.
• The first urge to stop usually arrives early. Sit through it once and the second one is quieter.
• If the task suddenly feels impossible, make it smaller rather than stopping. One paragraph. One function. One row.
• If you are stuck, say the problem out loud. It changes what you can see.

3 When it ends

• Write one line about where to start next time. Future you will be grateful.
• Roll your shoulders and your neck before the next block.
• Leave the desk tidier than you found it. Two minutes now saves ten later.

4What to put on

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