Focus session · drawing · 50 min

Deep work timer: 50 minutes of drawing (brown noise), when you are on your own

One block of drawing with brown noise underneath. Fifty minutes, the length of a therapy hour, with ten minutes off afterwards.

50:00

Press start. The timer keeps time so you do not have to look at a clock.

Unclench your jaw. You were probably holding it without noticing. Being on your own is not required, but it does make this simpler. Keep it simple: breath in, breath out, notice.

1 Before you start

  • Have a piece of paper beside you for the thoughts that will try to interrupt.
  • Decide what you will do if you get stuck: write the problem out, then move on.
  • Decide now what you will do when the timer ends. Otherwise the decision will eat the first five minutes.
  • Accept that the first five minutes will feel like wading. Wading counts.
  • Make sure your chair is at a height where your feet are flat on the floor.

2 While the timer runs

  • If you are stuck, say the problem out loud. It changes what you can see.
  • It is fine to stare at the wall for a minute. That is often where the answer is.
  • Notice the moment your hand moves toward your phone. That moment is the whole skill.
  • If you are suddenly sleepy, stand up for ten seconds and sit back down.

3 When it ends

  • Do not immediately open the thing you were avoiding. Give the block a proper end.
  • Note what you actually got done, not what you meant to get done.
  • Take the break away from the screen, even if it is just the other side of the room.

4What to put on

brown noise — Lower and softer than white noise, closer to a waterfall heard from a distance. Good if white noise feels too hissy.

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