Focus session for decluttering: 25 minutes, a fan or air conditioner, on a day that started badly

1 Before you start

• Put the thing you keep reaching for out of arm's reach.
• If your mind is already racing, write down the three loudest thoughts before you begin.
• Close the door, or put headphones on, whichever signals "working" to the people around you.
• Decide that today's session does not have to be good. It has to happen.
• Set the timer where you can see it, or where you can deliberately not see it.

2 While the timer runs

• When you finish a piece, pause for three seconds before starting the next. It keeps the pace honest.
• When the timer feels too long, look at it less. The clock is not the task.
• If your attention keeps sliding, shorten the next block rather than abandoning this one.
• If you are suddenly sleepy, stand up for ten seconds and sit back down.

3 When it ends

• Roll your shoulders and your neck before the next block.
• Note what you actually got done, not what you meant to get done.
• Decide whether the next block is the same task or a different one. Do not drift into it.

4What to put on

a fan or air conditioner — A constant mechanical hum with no variation. The lack of change is the point — nothing in it asks for your attention.