Make the Next Step Easy to Find

A routine can lose time before the work even begins: you return to a task and have to reconstruct where you left off.

Try a small handoff to your future self. At the end of a work or study session, write one line: “Next, I will…” Make it an action you can start, not a broad goal—“solve question 4” is clearer than “review algebra.” When you return, begin there; revise the note if circumstances have changed.

This keeps the routine useful without requiring a full plan for every session. The note is a starting point, not a contract. If it takes longer to maintain than it saves, simplify it.