Deep work timer: 45 minutes of practising an instrument (forest at dusk), when you have been putting it off

1 Before you start

• Dim the screen slightly. Bright screens make long sessions harder than they need to be.
• If you are dreading it, make the first action physical: open the file, sharpen the pencil.
• Decide what counts as done for this block. "Two pages" is better than "make progress".
• Choose one question to answer in this block, rather than a whole subject to cover.
• Have a piece of paper beside you for the thoughts that will try to interrupt.

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 feel the urge to check something, write it on the paper beside you and keep going. Deal with the list afterwards.
• Notice whether you are working or performing work. They look similar from the outside.
• The first urge to stop usually arrives early. Sit through it once and the second one is quieter.

3 When it ends

• Write down the question you could not answer, so it has somewhere to live.
• Leave the file open if you are coming back. Closing it makes restarting harder.
• Resist the urge to review the work straight away. Come back to it later with fresh eyes.

4What to put on

forest at dusk — Birds settling, leaves moving, nothing sudden. It works because it sounds like a place you can safely ignore.