Before you begin

What you will put into practice

  • A goal is optional in preflight.
  • Name the session outcome and choose a supporting intent.
  • Use an optional definition of done when the finish line needs precision.
  • Choose the duration before starting.
  • Close the Loop with evidence, an outcome, and a next action.

Complete the five-part preflight

Before the timer begins, preflight asks for Goal, This session will…, Supporting intent, optional Definition of done, and Duration. The goal adds context, while the remaining fields make the block concrete.

If no Goal Loop applies, select Start without a goal. The session can still use the current intent direction and a clear outcome.

Try this

  1. Goal: choose a linked Goal Loop or leave it unlinked.
  2. Session outcome: finish the sentence This session will….
  3. Supporting intent: choose the line that should guide this block.
  4. Definition of done: add it only when a sharper finish line helps.
  5. Duration: choose the boundary for this session.

Fit the outcome to the duration

Replace work on presentation with a visible unit such as draft slides one through five. If uncertainty is high, choose a smaller complete unit rather than a larger vague task.

The duration is a planning boundary, not a universal optimum. Use evidence from your own sessions to decide whether the next block should be shorter or longer.

Try this

  1. Name one output.
  2. Check that the output could reasonably fit the selected duration.
  3. Put the sharper condition in Definition of done when useful.

Prepare the first minute and protect the perimeter

Open the file, identify the first action, and close unrelated material before starting. Task-switching and environmental-distraction research reports measurable performance costs in studied settings, but the practical effect varies by task and person.

Pro site protection can guard saved distraction sites during focus. Pro ambient sounds can provide a consistent setting when sound supports rather than divides attention.

Try this

  1. Open the working material.
  2. Write the first physical action.
  3. Close unrelated tabs and silence avoidable notifications.
  4. Use site protection or ambient sound only when it supports this session.
Sources [1][2]

Begin the protected session deliberately

Choose Begin protected session when the Goal Loop and outcome are ready. Choose Start without a goal when the work does not belong to a loop or you simply need an ordinary focus block.

Intent Tab records the selected context when the session starts. A planned reminder never starts the timer for you.

Try this

  1. Read the outcome once.
  2. Start with or without a goal.
  3. Stay with the defined unit until the boundary, then stop or deliberately begin another session.

Use Close the Loop when the session ends

Close the Loop asks for one piece of evidence, an outcome—Moved forward, Partial, Blocked, or Changed direction—and the next action. Linked sessions add that reflection to the Goal Loop’s local record.

Record what changed rather than grading the session. The next action should reduce restart effort for the next protected block.

Try this

  1. Evidence: write the visible change, decision, or blocker.
  2. Outcome: choose the closest description of what happened.
  3. Next action: leave one concrete restart point.
  4. Save the reflection, defer it for later, or skip it deliberately.

Put it into Intent Tab

A 3-minute setup

Complete one protected session and leave usable evidence.

Included

Focus preflight

Set the optional goal, session outcome, supporting intent, optional definition of done, and duration.

Included

Protected session

Create a timed boundary with or without a Goal Loop.

Included

Close the Loop

Capture evidence, outcome, and next action after the session.

Pro

Site protection

Guard saved distraction sites during focus.

Review promptDid the preflight define a finish line that fit the duration, and did Close the Loop leave a clear next action?

Research notes

Sources behind this guide

  1. 01
    A large-scale analysis of task switching practice effects across the lifespan

    Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences via PubMed Central

    Task switching involves measurable performance costs in studied tasks.
  2. 02
    Reduction of environmental distraction to facilitate cognitive performance

    Frontiers in Psychology via PubMed Central

    Environmental distraction and cognitive performance.

Content was rephrased for compliance with licensing restrictions. No single focus-session duration or environment is optimal for every person or task.