
Ask HN: How to do intensive mental work without long chunks of free time? - kovek
Those of you who work on side projects whenever you find a short bit of free time, how do you do it? How can you do deep&#x2F;intensive mental work when you do not have long chunks of time available without distractions?<p>I recently started doing two things:<p>- clocking in and out of some small tasks in my org files<p>- run a small app that will make a sound every three minutes. It reminds me to or be working towards my goals or take a short  break (3 to 6 minutes) from too much work (which aligns with my goals).
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shakna
Depends on the project.

I have a small notebook with me, always. Anytime I have five minutes, I review
what I did last, and look to expand on it.

It generally takes me about six months for the idea to be fully formed and
detailed. And usually less than that to implement the idea, because of the
groundwork I've laid.

Now, if it's meant to be a profitable side project, that startup time isn't
always acceptable. The pomodoro method might fit better.

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f_allwein
you might consider the Pomodoro technique, i.e. working in chunks of 25
minutes with 100% focus, then taking a 5 minute break.
[http://pomodorotechnique.com](http://pomodorotechnique.com)

