Deep work timer: 50 minutes of portfolio work (a washing machine), if you are tired of apps

1 Before you start

• Set the timer where you can see it, or where you can deliberately not see it.
• Promise yourself you will not check anything until the timer ends, including "just quickly".
• Make sure your chair is at a height where your feet are flat on the floor.
• If your mind is already racing, write down the three loudest thoughts before you begin.
• Take one slow breath before you press start, so the session has a beginning.

2 While the timer runs

• 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 are bored, the boredom is usually the last thing before something clicks.
• If a thought will not leave, give it one line on the page and return to the task.
• When you get an idea for something else, park it. Do not follow it.

3 When it ends

• Resist the urge to review the work straight away. Come back to it later with fresh eyes.
• Write one line about where to start next time. Future you will be grateful.
• Take the break away from the screen, even if it is just the other side of the room.

4What to put on

a washing machine — Domestic, mechanical, and oddly steadying. The sound of something else being dealt with.