A 50-minute block for practising an instrument, with a washing machine, when you only have a few minutes

1 Before you start

• Close the door, or put headphones on, whichever signals "working" to the people around you.
• Tell yourself the goal is time spent, not output produced.
• Decide what counts as done for this block. "Two pages" is better than "make progress".
• Decide in advance that a bad sentence is still progress.
• Make sure your chair is at a height where your feet are flat on the floor.

2 While the timer runs

• When you catch yourself re-reading the same sentence, stop and write down what you were looking for.
• Notice the moment your hand moves toward your phone. That moment is the whole skill.
• When you notice you have drifted, do not restart the block. Just come back and carry on counting from where the timer is.
• When you have drifted for the fifth time, that is still four returns. Keep going.

3 When it ends

• Resist the urge to review the work straight away. Come back to it later with fresh eyes.
• Say the session is finished, out loud if you can. It marks the boundary.
• 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.