Focus session for portfolio work: 25 minutes, rain on a window, if you are tired of apps

1 Before you start

• Turn off notifications for the next block, not just to silent.
• Let go of the version of this task you imagined doing perfectly.
• Take one slow breath before you press start, so the session has a beginning.
• If your mind is already racing, write down the three loudest thoughts before you begin.
• Put the thing you keep reaching for out of arm's reach.

2 While the timer runs

• When you get an idea for something else, park it. Do not follow it.
• When you have drifted for the fifth time, that is still four returns. Keep going.
• If the task suddenly feels impossible, make it smaller rather than stopping. One paragraph. One function. One row.
• Notice the moment your hand moves toward your phone. That moment is the whole skill.

3 When it ends

• Roll your shoulders and your neck before the next block.
• Write down the question you could not answer, so it has somewhere to live.
• Put the notes you made where you will find them next time.

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.