Steal the Focus

Ten minutes of dry fire. That’s what I do before I sit down to write.

I’ve started and stopped for two years. Time-blocking, habit trackers, alarms — I derailed every time. Then one day it occurred to me: what if I did something engaging right before writing? Something that already pulls my full attention. Maybe that was the ramp.

So. Dry fire.

Some writers walk. Some sit down and type with ease. I practice shooting fundamentals — drawing, aiming, moving, pressing the trigger with an unloaded gun, and using weighted dummy rounds. No live ammunition. A shot timer running. Faster and more accurate, rep after rep. If you can’t picture it, search “practical shooting” on YouTube. Think John Wick, minus the plot.

It demands everything. Where the sights land on the draw. The exact point on the target — not a general area, a precise point. Calling yourself out the second your eyes drift. Fewer mistakes, every time.

Then I put it down and open the page. The focus is already running.

That’s the whole trick. Focus is transferable. You build it in one place and carry it into the next.

Maybe that helps someone.

If you’ve reorganized and tracked and time-blocked and still can’t get to the page — stop fixing the schedule. Find one thing you already focus on with ease. Do it. Ten minutes, an hour, whatever you fancy. The moment you finish, go straight to the notebook or the machine. Don’t stop to think about it.

You’ll find the transition easier. The page lighter.

None of this is groundbreaking. But writing is as fundamental as reading — deeper than reading, even. In a world built to distract you, it’s how you keep your mind sharp and your sanity intact.

So if you’re stuck, try it. Forget the schedule, the alarms, the calendar block. Do the one thing you can already focus on, and ride it onto the page.