Deep work timer: 90 minutes of portfolio work (a library), when you are at home and cannot settle

1 Before you start

• Decide now what you will do when the timer ends. Otherwise the decision will eat the first five minutes.
• 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".
• Let go of the version of this task you imagined doing perfectly.
• Get water now, so you do not have to get up in fifteen minutes.

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.
• When you catch yourself re-reading the same sentence, stop and write down what you were looking for.
• If you are suddenly sleepy, stand up for ten seconds and sit back down.

3 When it ends

• Put the notes you made where you will find them next time.
• Look out of a window for thirty seconds. Your eyes have been at one distance for a while.
• Do not immediately open the thing you were avoiding. Give the block a proper end.

4What to put on

a library — Almost nothing: distant footsteps, a chair, a page turning. Useful if you want the feeling of a room where work is normal.