Deep work timer: 25 minutes of brainstorming (vinyl crackle), when you are doing this for the first time

1 Before you start

• Put your phone in another room, or in a drawer you cannot reach without standing up.
• Give yourself permission to stop when the timer ends, even mid-sentence.
• Go to the toilet first. It sounds trivial until you are mid-sentence.
• Decide in advance that a bad sentence is still progress.
• Have a piece of paper beside you for the thoughts that will try to interrupt.

2 While the timer runs

• The first urge to stop usually arrives early. Sit through it once and the second one is quieter.
• When you notice you have drifted, do not restart the block. Just come back and carry on counting from where the timer is.
• If you feel restless, change your posture rather than your task.
• If the task suddenly feels impossible, make it smaller rather than stopping. One paragraph. One function. One row.

3 When it ends

• Write down the question you could not answer, so it has somewhere to live.
• Stand up and move for at least two minutes. The break is part of the method, not a reward.
• Take the break away from the screen, even if it is just the other side of the room.

4What to put on

vinyl crackle — A thin layer of surface noise over nothing much. Just enough texture to stop the room feeling empty.