A deep work setup that actually sticks

Most focus advice fails because it asks you to make a decision every single day. The setups that last are the ones you configure once and then forget about.

Start with one protected block

Pick a single ninety minute block, the same time each weekday, and defend it like a client meeting. One block you actually keep beats four you cancel.

Remove the decision, not the distraction

Blocking apps help, but the real win is deciding the night before exactly what the block is for. Ambiguity is the distraction.

Keep a shutdown ritual

Write down where you stopped and what comes next. Tomorrow's block starts instantly instead of with ten minutes of re-reading.