Focus session · portfolio work · 90 min
Deep work timer: 90 minutes of portfolio work (vinyl crackle), when you have been putting it off
One block of portfolio work with vinyl crackle underneath. One full ultradian cycle, for work that needs a long runway.
Press start. The timer keeps time so you do not have to look at a clock.
Let the first out-breath be longer than the in-breath. Nothing dramatic, just longer. You have been putting this off. Starting is the only step that matters. No preamble. We start with the body.
1 Before you start
- Dim the screen slightly. Bright screens make long sessions harder than they need to be.
- Lower the bar until starting feels almost silly, then start.
- Write down the one thing you are going to do, in a single sentence, before you start.
- Tell yourself the goal is time spent, not output produced.
- Set the timer where you can see it, or where you can deliberately not see it.
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.
- When you finish a piece, pause for three seconds before starting the next. It keeps the pace honest.
- Notice the moment your hand moves toward your phone. That moment is the whole skill.
- It is fine to stare at the wall for a minute. That is often where the answer is.
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.
- Take the break away from the screen, even if it is just the other side of the room.
4What to put on
vinyl crackle — A thin layer of surface noise over nothing much. Just enough texture to stop the room feeling empty.
This page is a tool, not a course. Nothing is tracked, nothing is saved, and nobody is told whether you finished.
If this block does not fit, try Deep work timer: 50 minutes of admin and email (a fireplace), when you have more time than usual, 90-minute writing session with vinyl crackle and a timer, before something difficult or A 50-minute block for studying, with forest at dusk, when you are not sure this will work.