Focus session for data work: 45 minutes, a fireplace, when you are cold and want to be warm

1 Before you start

• Decide what counts as done for this block. "Two pages" is better than "make progress".
• 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.
• Expect to want to stop at about the eight-minute mark. That is normal and it passes.
• Put the thing you keep reaching for out of arm's reach.

2 While the timer runs

• If you are bored, the boredom is usually the last thing before something clicks.
• It is fine to stare at the wall for a minute. That is often where the answer is.
• If a thought will not leave, give it one line on the page and return to the task.
• Notice whether you are working or performing work. They look similar from the outside.

3 When it ends

• Write down the question you could not answer, so it has somewhere to live.
• Leave the file open if you are coming back. Closing it makes restarting harder.
• Decide whether the next block is the same task or a different one. Do not drift into it.

4What to put on

a fireplace — Crackles and a low roar underneath. Warm, irregular, and undemanding.