Focus session · portfolio work · 90 min
Deep work timer: 90 minutes of portfolio work (rain on a window), when you are cold and want to be warm
One block of portfolio work with rain on a window underneath. One full ultradian cycle, for work that needs a long runway.
90:00
Press start. The timer keeps time so you do not have to look at a clock.
Put a hand on your chest for a moment if that feels steadying. Or don't. Both are allowed. Get a blanket first. Being cold defeats the point. This works better when you don't overthink it.
1 Before you start
- Have a piece of paper beside you for the thoughts that will try to interrupt.
- Choose one question to answer in this block, rather than a whole subject to cover.
- Clear the surface in front of you down to the thing you are working on.
- Promise yourself you will not check anything until the timer ends, including "just quickly".
- Get water now, so you do not have to get up in fifteen minutes.
2 While the timer runs
- If nothing is working, write badly on purpose for two minutes.
- When the timer feels too long, look at it less. The clock is not the task.
- When you notice you have drifted, do not restart the block. Just come back and carry on counting from where the timer is.
- If your attention keeps sliding, shorten the next block rather than abandoning this one.
3 When it ends
- Write down the question you could not answer, so it has somewhere to live.
- Leave the desk tidier than you found it. Two minutes now saves ten later.
- If it went badly, note one thing that worked anyway. There is usually one.
4What to put on
rain on a window — Steady rain is broadband noise with a slow natural rhythm. It masks speech and keyboard clatter without being interesting enough to listen to.
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