Focus session · exam revision · 45 min
Focus session for exam revision: 45 minutes, rain on a window, if you have five quiet minutes
45 minutes of exam revision, with rain on a window 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.
Notice the temperature of the air on the backs of your hands. Five quiet minutes is enough. Ten is generous. This is a short one, so let's use the time properly.
1 Before you start
- Close every tab that is not needed for this one task. Not minimised — closed.
- Give yourself permission to stop when the timer ends, even mid-sentence.
- Have a piece of paper beside you for the thoughts that will try to interrupt.
- If your mind is already racing, write down the three loudest thoughts before you begin.
- Put your phone in another room, or in a drawer you cannot reach without standing up.
2 While the timer runs
- Notice whether you are working or performing work. They look similar from the outside.
- When you have drifted for the fifth time, that is still four returns. Keep going.
- If a thought will not leave, give it one line on the page and return to the task.
- If you are stuck, say the problem out loud. It changes what you can see.
3 When it ends
- Write one line about where to start next time. Future you will be grateful.
- Decide whether the next block is the same task or a different one. Do not drift into it.
- Do not immediately open the thing you were avoiding. Give the block a proper end.
4What to put on
rain on a window — Steady rain is broadband noise with a slow natural rhythm. It masks speech and keyboard clatter without being interesting enough to listen to.
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