A 50-minute block for problem solving, with plain quiet, when you have been putting it off

1 Before you start

• Close every tab that is not needed for this one task. Not minimised — closed.
• Remember that motivation usually arrives after starting, not before.
• Dim the screen slightly. Bright screens make long sessions harder than they need to be.
• If your mind is already racing, write down the three loudest thoughts before you begin.
• Set the timer where you can see it, or where you can deliberately not see it.

2 While the timer runs

• If you feel restless, change your posture rather than your task.
• If nothing is working, write badly on purpose for two minutes.
• When the timer feels too long, look at it less. The clock is not the task.
• Notice whether you are working or performing work. They look similar from the outside.

3 When it ends

• Decide whether the next block is the same task or a different one. Do not drift into it.
• Leave the desk tidier than you found it. Two minutes now saves ten later.
• If it went badly, note one thing that worked anyway. There is usually one.

4What to put on

plain quiet — No added sound at all. If you have a quiet room, that is usually better than any recording of one.