Focus session · portfolio work · 45 min
Deep work timer: 45 minutes of portfolio work (café murmur), when you cannot concentrate on anything else
One block of portfolio work with café murmur underneath. A single class period, the length most people can hold before the quality drops.
45:00
Press start. The timer keeps time so you do not have to look at a clock.
Let your forehead smooth out. Most of us hold a small frown there all day. When concentration is gone, work with what is left. Keep it simple: breath in, breath out, notice.
1 Before you start
- Dim the screen slightly. Bright screens make long sessions harder than they need to be.
- Plan to leave the last two minutes for writing down where to pick up next time.
- Put the thing you keep reaching for out of arm's reach.
- If you are dreading it, make the first action physical: open the file, sharpen the pencil.
- Take one slow breath before you press start, so the session has a beginning.
2 While the timer runs
- When you finish a piece, pause for three seconds before starting the next. It keeps the pace honest.
- If you are bored, the boredom is usually the last thing before something clicks.
- If the task suddenly feels impossible, make it smaller rather than stopping. One paragraph. One function. One row.
- Notice the moment your hand moves toward your phone. That moment is the whole skill.
3 When it ends
- Stand up and move for at least two minutes. The break is part of the method, not a reward.
- Put the notes you made where you will find them next time.
- Write down the question you could not answer, so it has somewhere to live.
4What to put on
café murmur — The blur of other people talking, with none of the words close enough to follow. Some people concentrate better with a low level of company.
This page is a tool, not a course. Nothing is tracked, nothing is saved, and nobody is told whether you finished.