Focus session · drawing · 45 min
Focus session for drawing: 45 minutes, a train carriage, when you are short on time
45 minutes of drawing, with a train carriage and a note on what to do when you drift.
45:00
Press start. The timer keeps time so you do not have to look at a clock.
Keep your eyes open if you like, resting on one point of the floor a metre or two ahead. Pick this one when you are short on time. This is a short one, so let's use the time properly.
1 Before you start
- Turn off notifications for the next block, not just to silent.
- 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.
- Let go of the version of this task you imagined doing perfectly.
- Dim the screen slightly. Bright screens make long sessions harder than they need to be.
2 While the timer runs
- Notice whether you are working or performing work. They look similar from the outside.
- When the timer feels too long, look at it less. The clock is not the task.
- If you are bored, the boredom is usually the last thing before something clicks.
- When you have drifted for the fifth time, that is still four returns. Keep going.
3 When it ends
- Do not immediately open the thing you were avoiding. Give the block a proper end.
- Write down the question you could not answer, so it has somewhere to live.
- Decide whether the next block is the same task or a different one. Do not drift into it.
4What to put on
a train carriage — Rhythmic, low, and slightly rumbly. Many people find the motion-and-noise combination easier to work to than silence.
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