Deep work timer: 45 minutes of admin and email (rain on a window), when nothing else has worked today

1 Before you start

• Take one slow breath before you press start, so the session has a beginning.
• Accept that the first five minutes will feel like wading. Wading counts.
• Write down the one thing you are going to do, in a single sentence, before you start.
• Give yourself permission to stop when the timer ends, even mid-sentence.
• Put the thing you keep reaching for out of arm's reach.

2 While the timer runs

• Notice whether you are working or performing work. They look similar from the outside.
• It is fine to stare at the wall for a minute. That is often where the answer is.
• If you are stuck, say the problem out loud. It changes what you can see.
• When the timer feels too long, look at it less. The clock is not the task.

3 When it ends

• Decide whether the next block is the same task or a different one. Do not drift into it.
• If it went badly, note one thing that worked anyway. There is usually one.
• Do not immediately open the thing you were avoiding. Give the block a proper end.

4What to put on

rain on a window — Steady rain is broadband noise with a slow natural rhythm. It masks speech and keyboard clatter without being interesting enough to listen to.