MathEstimate the answer first so you catch your own math slips
Estimate the answer first so you catch your own math slips. Ten seconds of rough rounding beats a calculator when a digit goes wrong.
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LogicAsk for the base rate before you trust a scary headline
Ask for the base rate before you trust a scary headline. One quick question tells you if a big jump in risk means a lot or almost nothing…
MemoryWalk a memory palace route to remember the points of your next talk
Walk a memory palace route to remember the points of your next talk, so each idea sits in a room you know and you can drop the notes…
FocusPick one playlist before the focus sit starts
Pick one playlist before the focus sit starts so you stop skipping tracks, scrolling for songs, and losing the first ten minutes of deep work.
FocusPick a hard stop time before the focus sit starts
Pick a hard stop time before every focus sit so the session has an edge, the work has a deadline, and the next task does not leak in…
FocusSilence phone vibration before the focus sit starts
Silence phone vibration before every focus sit so haptic buzzes stop stealing the first minutes of deep work.
FocusClose open Slack threads before the focus sit starts
Close or park open Slack threads before every focus sit so unread badges stop stealing the first ten minutes of deep work.
FocusSay the next three steps out loud before you sit for focus
Speak three concrete next steps before every focus sit so your first minutes go to work, not re-planning.
FocusWrite a return line before you leave a deep work block
Write one unfinished next-clause before every deep work exit so you resume mid-thought instead of from a blank page.
FocusPark one worry on paper before your next deep work
Park one worry in a single paper sentence with a check time so deep work starts clean and loops stop stealing the first twenty minutes.
MemoryTeach one idea aloud in ninety seconds, no notes
Teach one idea aloud in ninety seconds with no notes so encoding produces the claim instead of faking fluency from rereading.
MindCap research tabs at five before any rabbit hole
Cap research at five named tabs so rabbit holes wait on a later list and decisions close with one cheap test instead of more browsing.