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Focus session · thesis writing · 90 min

Deep work timer: 90 minutes of thesis writing (a library), when nothing else has worked today

One block of thesis writing with a library 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.

Take one breath that is slightly slower than the last one. That is enough to start. Nothing else has worked today. That is not a reason to skip this. We'll go through it in order, without much decoration.

1 Before you start

  • Clear the surface in front of you down to the thing you are working on.
  • Accept that the first five minutes will feel like wading. Wading counts.
  • Write down the one thing you are going to do, in a single sentence, before you start.
  • Remind yourself that you are allowed to produce something mediocre in the first pass.
  • Close the door, or put headphones on, whichever signals "working" to the people around you.

2 While the timer runs

  • When the timer feels too long, look at it less. The clock is not the task.
  • When you get an idea for something else, park it. Do not follow it.
  • If you are suddenly sleepy, stand up for ten seconds and sit back down.
  • If you feel the urge to check something, write it on the paper beside you and keep going. Deal with the list afterwards.

3 When it ends

  • Note what you actually got done, not what you meant to get done.
  • Do not immediately open the thing you were avoiding. Give the block a proper end.
  • If it went badly, note one thing that worked anyway. There is usually one.

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.

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: 90 minutes of studying (vinyl crackle), when you feel restless rather than tired, 25-minute decluttering session with birds at dawn and a timer, after eating too much or Focus session for research: 45 minutes, forest at dusk, when you want to be left alone.